Olive Leaf Extract and Oleuropein: What the Numbers on the Label Mean

By the Zespo team · Updated 28 October 2026

The olive tree (Olea europaea) gives us olives and olive oil, and its leaves have been dried and brewed as tea around the Mediterranean for centuries. Today leaf and fruit are also extracted for capsules. This guide does one thing: it shows how to read the numbers on an olive leaf label, using the Zespo Olive Leaf and Fruit Extract Complex as the worked example.

What is in one serving (from the label)

• Olive leaf extract: 1,000 mg (the pack states 20% oleuropein)
• Olive fruit extract: 300 mg (20% hydroxytyrosol)
• Hydroxytyrosol: 60 mg, which sits inside the 300 mg of fruit extract
• Serving size: 2 capsules · 30 servings per container · 60 capsules
• Other ingredients: hypromellose (the plant-based capsule shell) and magnesium stearate

Add the two extracts and one serving holds 1,300 mg of extract. The 60 mg of hydroxytyrosol is not extra: it is 20% of the 300 mg fruit extract, so it should not be added on top. Reading a label correctly means knowing which lines are ingredients and which are the marker compounds measured inside them.

What is oleuropein?

Oleuropein is a bitter compound found in olive leaves and unripe olives. It is the usual marker for olive leaf extracts. When olives are cured or processed, part of the oleuropein breaks down into hydroxytyrosol, which is why labels for olive fruit extract use that name instead.

What does "standardised to 20% oleuropein" mean?

A standardised extract guarantees a minimum share of a marker compound. As a simple calculation, 1,000 mg of an extract standardised to 20% oleuropein contains about 200 mg of oleuropein. A plain leaf powder has no guaranteed figure, so a powder and a standardised extract cannot be compared milligram for milligram.

How to compare two olive leaf labels

• Look for the form: extract or plain powder, and the percentage stated for the marker.
• Read the amount per serving, not per capsule. Here a serving is 2 capsules.
• Check servings per container to find the real length of a pack: 60 capsules at 2 a day is 30 servings.
• Check whether a marker line (like hydroxytyrosol) is inside another ingredient or listed separately.
• Read the other ingredients list: capsule shell and any flow agents.

How the label says to take it

As a dietary supplement, take two (2) capsules daily, preferably with a meal or as directed by a qualified healthcare professional. Do not exceed the recommended dosage. If you are pregnant, nursing, taking medication or have a known medical condition, consult a healthcare professional before using this or any dietary supplement.

Common label questions

Is 1,300 mg the amount of oleuropein? No. It is the weight of the two extracts together. Oleuropein is a fraction of the leaf extract.

How long does one bottle last? 30 servings: 60 capsules at 2 capsules a day.

What is the capsule made of? Hypromellose, a plant-based cellulose shell.

Related reading: Zespo brand facts · all Zespo links.

Next step: See the full label and pack details on zespo.in · This product on Amazon.in

More label guides: Beta sitosterol explained · Astragalus extract ratio explained · Citrus bergamot and olive leaf explained

This article is general education about reading supplement labels. Zespo Olive Leaf and Fruit Extract Complex is a dietary supplement, not a medicine. Take as directed on the label.