Characterization of Argentinean Olive Oils

CARELLI , A .A.; CECI, L.N.

Madrid, España.

Congreso; 4th. Euro Fed Lipid Congress; 2006

Euro Fed Lipid

In recent years new olive trees were implanted in non-traditional regions of Argentina such as “La Rioja” and “Catamarca”. The adaptation capacity of Mediterranean cultivars to local agronomical conditions could be different between varieties. This study constitutes a part of a wider project to characterize Argentinean olive oils and establish their compositional normal limits and their accordance with those genuineness criteria fixed by the International Olive Oil Council (IOOC).      Thirty-seven samples of virgin-olive oils belonged to 2004 and 2005 crops and to different varieties (Arbequina, Barnea, Picual, Arauco, Empeltre, Frantoio, Coratina and Manzanilla) from diverse Argentinean regions were examined. The Oxidative Stability Index (OSI), the extinction coefficients, fatty-acid (FA) percentages and the contents of polyphenols, chrophylls, carotenoids, sterols, erythrodiol-uvaol and waxes (C40-C46) were evaluated using international analytical methods. In addition, multivariate analysis based on Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Clusters Analysis (CA) was applied. All oils from Arbequina, except one of them, made up a cluster characterized fundamentally by low oleic acid contents (OC), low ratio oleic acid to linoleic acid plus linolenic acid (OLLnR) and high wax contents (WC) according to biplots observed in the PCA. This performance was observed principally in 2004, being the wax content and some of the FA percentages out of IOOC limits. A poor adaptation of Arbequina to local agronomical medium could be the responsible for this behaviour. However, in 2005 the centroids of Arbequina and other varieties were displaced to the direction of higher OC and OLLnR and lower WC.  The higher autumnal rainfall in some regions during 2005 could be the reason of these displacements. In 2005, only two Arbequina samples exceeded WC. Some samples of Picual and Manzanilla formed a cluster characterized by higher OC, OLLnR, OSI as well as apparent sitosterol percentage and lower WC. Coratina and Arauco integrated a cluster with high polyphenols contents and low total sterols contents. All samples except those corresponding to Empeltre (2004-2005), Manzanilla and Picual (2005) presented at least one criterium out of limits. However, all of them satisfied the genuineness criteria for sterols and erytrodiol+uvaol contents. The results obtained in this study contribute to the proper acknowledgement of the composition and quality of Argentinean olive oils and their exportation possibilities.