Biochemical Characterization of Arbequina Extra Virgin Olive Oil Produced in Turkey


ULUATA S., Altuntaş Ü., Özçelik B.

JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN OIL CHEMISTS SOCIETY, cilt.93, sa.5, ss.617-626, 2016 (SCI-Expanded) identifier identifier

Özet

Varieties of the olive cultivar Arbequina have recently been cultivated in Turkey. The objective of the study is to characterize and evaluate extra-virgin olive oils (EVOO) produced from Arbequina grown in the Aegean and Mediterranean regions of Turkey. Major and minor components such as carotenoids, squalene, phenolics and tocopherols were studied to assess their effects on product quality and health benefits. The samples, identified as ArbqI and ArbqA, were from the Izmir and Adana provinces, respectively. Samples were analyzed by GC-FID to determine fatty acid composition, sterol composition, TAG profile and squalene content. Individual phenolic fractions were analyzed by LC-MS/MS and tocopherol isomers were determined by HPLC. According to the results obtained from this study; Total phenolic content (TPC) of the samples were 454.68 and 50.86 mg Gallic acid/kg oil for ArbqI and ArbqA, respectively. Hydroxytyrosol and tyrosol were determined to be the main phenols. The major tocopherol isomer found in ArbqI and ArbqA was alpha-tocopherol with levels of 179.55 and 202.5 mg/kg oil, respectively. beta-Carotene levels in both samples were similar at 0.2 mg/kg. Findings of this study were compared with the literature on Arbequina olive oil produced in different countries. It was determined that Arbequina olive oil of high quality can be produced in Turkey, especially in the Aegean region.