Abstract
The fatty alcohol (FAL) composition of olive oils produced in Southwest Calabria (Southern Italy) was analyzed over three harvest years 2005–2006–2007. Three autochthonous cultivars: Cassanese, Ottobratica, Sinopolese and seven allochtonous cultivars: Coratina, Itrana, Leccino, Nocellara Messinese, Nociara, Pendolino and Picholine were considered. Hexacosanol was always the main FAL occurring in the olive oil. The autochthonous cultivars were among those with the highest total FAL contents. Nevertheless, both autochthonous and allochthonous cultivars produced olive oil within the limit indicated by EU and IOC regulations. Cultivar affected the FAL content highly significantly or very highly significantly, whereas in a large part of the cases the harvest year did not influence the FAL content. Cultivar x harvest year influenced highly significantly or very highly significantly only C 22-OH , C 23-OH , C 24-OH , C 25-OH , odd chain FALs and the ratio even chain/odd chain FALs.
Highlights
Olive oil is mainly composed of glyceridic components (Giuffrè, 2013a) and minor components such as sterols (Giuffrè, 2012; Giuffrè et al, 2012; Giuffrè and Louadj, 2013), waxes (Giuffrè, 2013b), polyphenols and tocopherols, which are generally used to characterize a mono-cultivar olive oil and to evaluate its chemical quality
Fatty alcohols (FALs) are a useful parameter for classifying different categories of olive oil: oils with a wax content of between 300 mg·kg-1 and 350 mg·kg-1 are considered to be lampante olive oil if the total aliphatic alcohol content is less than or equal to 350 mg·kg-1; oils with a wax content of between 300 mg kg-1 and 350 mg·kg-1 are considered to be crude olive-pomace oil if the total aliphatic alcohol content is above 350 mg·kg-1 and if the erythrodiol and uvaol content is greater than 3.5 % (EU, 2011; IOC, 2012)
The highest value of C22-OH was found in Ottobratica (21.47±11.61 mg·kg-1) accounting for 15.51% of the total FALs, followed by Pendolino and Sinopolese, Coratina represented the lowest content with 4.40 mg·kg-1
Summary
Olive oil is mainly composed of glyceridic components (Giuffrè, 2013a) and minor components such as sterols (Giuffrè, 2012; Giuffrè et al, 2012; Giuffrè and Louadj, 2013), waxes (Giuffrè, 2013b), polyphenols and tocopherols, which are generally used to characterize a mono-cultivar olive oil and to evaluate its chemical quality. Fatty alcohols (FALs) are contained in the minor component fraction and in particular in the unsaponifiable fraction. Grob et al (1990) found a fatty alcohol content in raw solvent-extracted olive oils (725 mg·kg-1) ten times higher than in extra virgin olive oil (73 and 61 mg·kg-1). All FALs otherwise known as aliphatic alcohols in olive oil are a mixture of long chain fatty alcohols known as policosanols. The majority of these are even chain fatty alcohols (ECFALs): C22-OH, C24-OH, C26-OH, and C28-OH. Odd chain fatty alcohols (OCFALs) are present in minor amounts: C23-OH, C25-OH, and C27-OH
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