**Preface to "Research on Characterization and Processing of Table Olives"**

Table olive is recognized as an essential component of the Mediterranean diet, having been explicitly included in the second level of its nutritional pyramid as an aperitif or culinary ingredient. The olive fruit is extremely bitter and must be processed to be edible as table olive. There is a wide range of production styles of table olives aimed at hydrolyzing the bitter glycoside oleuropein. Producers demand innovative techniques to improve the performance and industrial sustainability. Consumers are interested in foods with optimal nutritional characteristics, high quality and safety, improved organoleptic characteristics, and with reduced additives. This Special Issue provides high-quality papers covering the state-of-the-art, recent progress, and perspectives related to characterization and processing of table olives. It covers a broad range of aspects, such as characterization of their chemical composition, bioavailability, advances in the processing technology, chemical and microbiological changes, optimized use of starter cultures for the improvement of the different fermentative processes, and new strategies to reduce sodium and additives for stabilizing the organoleptic properties and avoiding defects. In addition, overviews of both the main technologies used for olive fermentation, including the role of lactic acid bacteria and yeasts characterizing this process, and of the processing and storage effects on the nutritional and sensory properties of table olives, are included.

> **Beatriz Gandul-Rojas, Lourdes Gallardo-Guerrero** *Editors*
