title: Pigments in Extra-Virgin Olive Oils Produced in Tuscany (Italy) in Different Years.
abstract: Pigments are responsible for the color of olive oils, and are an important ingredient that is directly related to the quality of this food. However, the concentration of pigments can vary significantly depending on the climate conditions, harvesting time, and olive cultivars. In this work, we quantified the main pigments in several extra-virgin olive oils produced from a blend of three cultivars (Moraiolo,Frantoio, andLeccino) typical of Tuscany (Italy) harvested in three different years: 2012, 2013, and 2014. Pigments-namely, β-carotene, lutein, pheophytin A, and pheophytin B-were quantified by a method based on the mathematical analysis of the near ultraviolet-visible absorption spectra of the oils. Data were analyzed by a multivariate statistical approach. The results show that the pigments' content of extra-virgin olive oils produced in 2014 can be well distinguished with respect to previous years. This can be explained by the anomalous climate conditions, which strongly affected Italy and, in particular, Tuscany, where the olives were harvested. This study represents an interesting example of how pigment content can be significant in characterizing olive oils. Moreover, this is the first report of pigment quantification in extra-virgin olive oils produced in Tuscany.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, Università di Pisa, 56124 Pisa, Italy. lazzerinicristina@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lazzerini
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, Università di Pisa, 56124 Pisa, Italy. valentina.domenici@unipi.it.
authors.forename: Valentina
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Domenici
keywords: Tuscany; carotenoid; chlorophyll; lutein; multivariate analysis; olive oils; pheophytin A; ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy; β-carotene