Olives, Salty

in the southern parts of Europe and in the Near East, early farmers had domesticated the olive. The earliest recorded occurrence is from the Greek island of Crete around 3500 B.C.29 Its cultivation was important to the ancient Greeks and Romans and they spread it to all the countries bordering the Mediterranean. Fresh olives are extremely bitter and must be treated with lye (a strong alkali leached from wood ash) before they can be eaten. Today, olives are grown primarily for olive oil. The Greeks first extracted the oil simply by heaping the olives on the ground in the sunshine and collecting the oil as it dribbled out of the ripe fruit. Now it is pressed out, but in the first pressing not a lot of pressure is used so that the bitterness stays behind; this is known as "extra virgin oil." Greece remains the biggest consumer at about 42 pounds per person per year, while the tiny consumption in the U.S. has risen from 10 ounces to 1.5 pounds per person annually. Similar figures are seen in England, France, and Germany.