Why do black olives typically come in cans and green olives typically come in jars?
Typically pitted ripe (black) olives are sold in cans but green olives and specialty olives (e.g., Kalamata) are in jars.
Is this due to properties of the olives and different storage needs?
Best Answer
It's for marketing purposes. People who can see the food inside the jar are more likely to buy it. Subconsciously a tall jar full of olives is more pleasing to the eyes than a can which is full to an unknown percentage. Another good thing about a glass container is that it is resealable, so the olives remain fresh longer.
So why don't they do this with black olives? Jars are more expensive than cans or other cheap plastic containers. Green olives seem to be more popular in american cuisine than black olives. Companies have more budget to afford more expensive packaging for green olives than for black olives. It also depends on where the olives come from - I eat a lot of olives from a niche Greek grocery store, and all of the olives (green or black) are in plastic containers, most likely because of the economics of the region from which they were imported.
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Quick Answer about "Why do black olives typically come in cans and green olives typically come in jars?"
The short of it is — black olives are “always” in a can because the canning process is what creates the desired sweetness; and green olives are “always” in a jar because the final product is expected to be a crispy raw olive, not a cooked one.Do black olives come in glass jars?
What, and black olives are ugly? Nope. Actually, they came in glass jars, too, once upon a time. But that's getting ahead of ourselves.Are black olives sold in jars?
Typically pitted ripe (black) olives are sold in cans but green olives and specialty olives (e.g., Kalamata) are in jars.Are black olives in Can real?
Black olives, though labeled as \u201cripe\u201d on supermarket cans, actually aren't: these, a California invention, are green olives that have been cured in an alkaline solution, and then treated with oxygen and an iron compound (ferrous gluconate) that turns their skins a shiny patent-leather black.How are olives Jarred?
The harvested olives are put in a water and lye solution and oxygen is piped in. After two days the lye is washed away. The lye penetrates the olive down to the pit. After the lye is discarded, a brine solution is prepared and ferrous gluconate is added.Why Can’t You Buy *Fresh* Olives?
More answers regarding why do black olives typically come in cans and green olives typically come in jars?
Answer 2
I would speculate that typically, black olives are consumed all at one time, as they are usually an ingredient in something. Green olives, however, are often consumed only a few at a time as a snack or in a drink, so being able to reseal the jar is much more useful.
Answer 3
If I understand this article correctly, it's because of how the two different types of olives are made, and packaged safely.
Most olives are green at first and then turn black/purple when they are ripe. Most black olives that are sold at the grocery store have been ripened artificially with certain substances/chemicals. These chemicals apparently are a good breeding ground for some bacteria and diseases. So these artificially ripened black olives need to be cooked for a while at a certain temperature after being packaged in their container - a process that only metal cans allow for, not glass jars.
I suppose there is room for different kinds of olives and different processes, which is why you'll find exceptions to this in niche stores, but the commonly available, non-specialty olives are probably packaged like that for this reason.
There is another article that's sort of confusing though, that validates the whole food safety issue.
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