From the YummyYucky team, founded by Nancy Nash
Can Babies Eat Olives? Choking Risk and Prep
A whole olive is a round, firm object with a slippery skin, and any pit inside makes it worse. That shape and firmness are a serious choking hazard for babies, and olives are also very salty. They are only reasonable in small amounts once pitted, rinsed, and chopped small, around 9 months and up.
⛔ Pit, rinse, and quarter; keep small and go easy on the salt.
Whole olives are a serious choking hazard because they are round, firm, and about the size of a baby's airway, and any pit (including fragments left in "pitted" olives) is hard and does not compress.1 Olives are also cured in a salty brine, and babies need very little salt. Never give a baby a whole olive. The only safe way to offer one, from around 9 months, is to remove the pit and check with your finger for fragments, rinse it well to cut the salt, and quarter lengthwise or finely chop it, and even then keep it to a small taste. Skip stuffed or flavored olives entirely.
Some foods have rules. YummyYucky remembers them for you. Track what your baby eats and the app flags foods like olives the moment they come up, watches every new allergen for three days after the first taste, and keeps the whole record dated and pediatrician-ready.
Start tracking for free →- When to introduce
- 9 months and up, in small amounts
- Common allergen?
- No (not a common allergen)
- Texture
- Pitted, rinsed, and chopped small
- Key nutrients
- Unsaturated fats, vitamin E
Olives are the small, firm fruit of the olive tree, sold whole, sliced, pitted, or stuffed. In their classic whole form they are not safe for a baby: the round shape, firm flesh, and any pit are a real choking risk, and they carry a lot of salt from the brine. Babies can have a small taste of a well-prepared olive from around 9 months, once you have removed the pit, rinsed the salt, and chopped it small. This is a food to offer in tiny amounts, not a staple.
Prep School: how to prepare olives for baby-led weaning (BLW) and purées
🍴 Baby-led weaning
🥄 Purées
Are olives safe? Choking & prep
The two big concerns with olives are choking and salt. A whole olive is round, firm, and roughly the size of a baby's airway, which is one of the highest-risk shapes there is, and a pit compounds that risk because it is hard and does not compress.1 Never hand a baby a whole olive, and never assume a "pitted" olive has no pit; check each one with your finger, because stray pits and pit fragments are common. To serve safely, remove the pit, rinse the olive well under water to wash off surface brine, and cut it into small pieces (quartered lengthwise or finely chopped), never round slices, which can still pose a risk. On salt: olives are cured in a salty brine and babies under 12 months need very little sodium, so rinse well and keep portions to a taste rather than a serving, and skip stuffed or flavored olives (blue cheese, garlic, anchovy, chili) which add more salt and sometimes other ingredients. Olives are not a common allergen, so allergic reactions are uncommon, though as with any new food, offer them on their own for the first taste and watch for a reaction.
Nutrition
Olives provide unsaturated fats, mostly monounsaturated, along with vitamin E and a small amount of fiber. Their color comes from plant compounds, and green and black (ripe) olives differ mainly in ripeness and processing rather than in a meaningful nutrition gap for a baby-sized taste. Because portions are kept small owing to the salt, olives are more of a flavor and texture experience than a source of everyday nutrition.
Goes well with
Hummus · Cucumber · Feta (small amount, rinsed) · Whole grain pita · Roasted tomato
Storage & freezing
Keep unopened jars or cans in the pantry until the date on the label. Once opened, store olives submerged in their brine in a covered container in the fridge, where they keep for a few weeks. If you have chopped olives for a baby, keep the prepped pieces in a small covered container in the fridge and use within a day or two, and rinse again before serving to cut the salt.
More vegetables to explore
Related reading
- Best first vegetables for babies →
- How to cut food to prevent choking →
- Signs your baby is ready for solids →
- Baby-led weaning vs. purées →
Common questions
Can babies eat whole olives?
No. A whole olive is a round, firm choking hazard, and any pit makes it far worse. Always remove the pit, rinse, and chop the olive small before offering it to a baby around 9 months or older.
Are olives too salty for babies?
Olives are cured in a salty brine and babies need very little salt, so they should only be a small taste, not a serving. Rinsing the olives well under water before you chop them helps wash off some of the surface salt.
Aren't pitted olives safe since the pit is removed?
Do not rely on the label. Pitting machines miss pits and leave fragments, so check every olive with your finger before serving, and still chop it small to remove the round-shape choking risk.
Are green or black olives better for a baby?
The difference is mostly ripeness and processing, not nutrition at a baby-sized taste. Both need to be pitted, rinsed, and chopped small either way, and both should be kept to small amounts because of the salt.
Sources
Further reading
- American Academy of Pediatrics (HealthyChildren.org): Starting Solid Foods
- CDC: Foods and Drinks to Encourage and Limit
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Start tracking for freeLast updated September 2026. Next review December 2026. How we write these: built from current published guidance from the AAP, CDC, FDA/EPA, NIAID, WHO, and other pediatric and public-health authorities, with sources cited on the page. See our editorial and medical policy for how we research, source, and update these, and how we double-check the food advice.
This is general information, not medical advice, and is not individualized for your baby. Always talk to your pediatrician about your baby's diet, introducing allergens, and any reaction. In an emergency, contact emergency services.
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