Uslu olive: characteristics, oil content and growing areas

Uslu is the Aegean's name for the black table olive. What Gemlik is to Marmara, Uslu is around Akhisar — though it never gained the same national profile.

Uslu in numbers

Source: Efe, Soykan, Cürebal and Sönmez (2016), Zeytin Kitabı. Fields the source leaves blank are shown as "—"; nothing has been estimated.

Akhisar's black table olive

Uslu is one of three varieties — with Gemlik and Edincik Su — that are widely processed as black table olives in Türkiye. Its centre is Akhisar; it is also grown in the western Mediterranean.

At 280 fruits per kilo and 85% flesh, it sits slightly larger and fleshier than Gemlik rather than in the same class. One study measured Uslu fruit length at 24.65 mm, against 25.67 mm for Memecik in the same work.

Why is it less known than Gemlik?

In the black table market Gemlik became the standard, backed by geographical indication and Marmara's processing infrastructure. Uslu stayed tied to Akhisar: a strong local processing tradition, but no national brand.

Its 21% oil also limits dual use; Uslu is essentially a table variety, and its value lies in size and flesh ratio.

Catalogue data

Uslu is one of four Turkish varieties listed in the International Olive Council's world catalogue — the others being Domat, Gemlik and Memecik. The catalogue records:

Source: International Olive Council (IOC), World Catalogue of Olive Varieties. ⚠ Some of these figures differ from those in Turkish sources, where 21% oil, 280 fruits per kilo and 85% flesh are also reported. The differences may stem from orchard, season and harvest timing; we report the figures as published, with their source named.

What the figures say

A flesh-to-pit ratio of 7.3 means roughly 88% of the fruit by weight is flesh. In a table variety this is the decisive measure, and Uslu is strong on it. For comparison, the same region's green table variety Domat sits at 4.85 and Gemlik at 3.60 (Çukurova trial).

At ~260 fruits per kilo, Uslu belongs among the large-fruited varieties. The contrast with oil varieties is clear: Kilis Yağlık runs to 560 fruits per kilo, Kalem Bezi to 450.

Being self-fertile is a practical advantage in table-olive growing: an orchard can be planted without a pollinator variety.

One detail also corrects the harvest account above: the catalogue lists Uslu among the early-ripening varieties, with veraison beginning in early October. Uslu is picked late not because it ripens slowly, but because black table processing waits for the full colour change.

In short

Uslu is Akhisar's black table variety: 280 fruits per kilo, 85% flesh, 21% oil. Slightly larger and fleshier than Gemlik, yet it never became a national brand. Conserving it as a regional asset matters for varietal diversity.