The Importance and Potential Uses of Olive Leaves

Since phenolic compounds have been known as strong antioxidants, studies on olive leaves have attracted the investigators due to the richness of phenolic compounds in olive leaves. Recently, olive leaves are used in medicine, cosmetics, and in pharmaceutical products. It has a high potential for industrial exploitation in the food industry. In this study, the importance of olive leaves is briefly given, the composition of olive leaves, main phenolics in olive leaves and their health effects are described. Studies conducted on technological usage of olive leaves are reviewed. The future of olive leaves for the food industry is discussed. It is expected that this study will be beneficial to academic and industrial researchers interested in antioxidants, food additives, functional foods, and olive leaves.