Washing of the olives. Washing the olives is an essential process to remove foreign matter carried by the olives (dust, soil, traces of pesticides, etc.) and thus prevent the formation of alkaline mixtures.
In traditional mills, the fruit is milled using cylindrical millstones. In modern plants, metal mills and crushers are used to grind the olives.
After milling, the olive paste is mixed in the softener with the addition of hot water. Mashing is a key stage in the processing and contributes to the fusion of small oil droplets with larger drops of olive oil.