Aussie Startup Releases a New Upcycled Superfood That’s Giving Matcha a Run for Its Money
Announcement posted by Olive Mill Water Company 21 Jul 2026
"Olive mill wastewater has been an environmental liability for as long as olive oil has been made. The Olive Mill Water Company is the first to turn it into a drink," says Founder Chris Plazzer.
Up to 30 million cubic metres of olive mill wastewater — enough to fill roughly 12,000 Olympic swimming pools — are produced globally each year, most of it in the Mediterranean region, which accounts for around 97% of world olive oil production.¹
Most of this by‑product is still disposed of in open evaporation ponds or spread on agricultural land — methods that carry real environmental costs, including groundwater contamination and soil degradation.² It has traditionally had very little viable path to consumer use, representing a largely untapped opportunity hiding in plain sight.
Olive Mill Water contains 1,650 mg/L of dissolved polyphenols, including hydroxytyrosol, one of food science's most heavily researched natural antioxidants. This places it at the upper end of the range reported for matcha infusions, with peer‑reviewed testing measuring dissolved polyphenol levels from approximately 800 mg/L to 1,770 mg/L depending on preparation method.³
It also contains up to 10× the antioxidant concentration found in the olive oil sold in supermarkets, reflecting the naturally high polyphenol load of olive mill wastewater.
"These polyphenols are some of the most well-researched natural antioxidants in food science, and yet millions of litres are thrown out because the liquid is difficult to process," says Founder Chris Plazzer. "What excites us most is taking a massive environmental problem and turning it into a drinkable consumer product - it's upcycling at a gold‑medal level, the kind you rarely see in food"
The Olive Mill Water Company is the first to bring this agricultural byproduct to market as a retail beverage, using a proprietary process designed to preserve the dissolved polyphenol content through extraction and bottling.
Olive Mill Water is available for purchase via the company's website.
About The Olive Mill Water Company
The Olive Mill Water Company was founded in 2024 by Chris Plazzer, an early pioneer of online wine retail in Australia who exited the sector in 2024. Plazzer was selected for the RMIT [Re]Launch program for emerging founders, supporting the development of this new beverage category. The company produces Olive Mill Wate using a proprietary process designed to preserve naturally occurring olive polyphenols and is headquartered in Victoria, Australia.
References
- Global olive mill wastewater volume and Mediterranean production share: estimates of up to 30 million m³ produced annually appear across multiple peer-reviewed sources (e.g. PMC, "Polyphenolic Fraction from Olive Mill Wastewater," 2019). The Mediterranean basin's ~97% share of world olive oil production is sourced from the International Olive Council, as cited in PNAS/PMC, "Fine-scale ecological and economic assessment of climate change on olive in the Mediterranean Basin."
- Environmental impacts of open evaporation ponds and land-spreading: documented in peer-reviewed studies including Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology (Kavvadias et al., 2016), "Fate of Potential Contaminants Due to Disposal of Olive Mill Wastewaters in Unprotected Evaporation Ponds," and ScienceDirect, "Air quality in olive mill wastewater evaporation ponds: Assessment of chemical and microbiological pollutants."
- Dissolved polyphenol content of matcha infusions: peer-reviewed analyses published in Foods (MDPI, 2020), "Antioxidant Properties and Nutritional Composition of Matcha Green Tea," and Foods (MDPI, 2024), "Exploring the Influence of Origin, Harvest Time, and Cultivation Method on Antioxidant Capacity and Bioactive Compounds of Matcha Teas," report total dissolved polyphenol levels ranging from approximately 800 mg/L to 1,770 mg/L depending on preparation method, harvest, and origin.
Media Contact Details
Contact: Chris Plazzer, Founder
Company: The Olive Mill Water Company
Website: olivemillwater.com
Email: contact@olivemillwater.com
Phone (Australia): +61 408 886 911