Olive Oil Characterization and Traceability

Abstract

Olive oil is characterized by its high quality, health benefits, and high price compared to other edible oils, which results in a permanent problem of adulteration. In that context, the purpose of olive oil authentication is oriented not solely to the detection of possible adulteration but to the genuineness certification of the product with regard to different authenticity issues, such as geographical origin, extraction system, and olive cultivar variety. The most recent authentication issues not only require advanced analytical solutions, but they are also in need of a multivariate mathematical procedure for extracting information from a complex set of chemical data. Thus, this chapter starts by providing a complete description of the main mathematical procedures used in olive oil characterization. The contents include several types of multivariate statistical analyses (cluster analysis, factor analysis, multidimensional scaling, discriminant analysis), expert systems, and artificial neural network. The second half of the chapter is devoted to a critical review of the different authenticity issues, starting with the agronomic and pedoclimatic characteristics that influence olive oil chemical composition. Other authenticity issues are olive ripeness, extraction system, and botanical variety. All these issues determine the distinctive properties of olive oil produced in different geographical zones. Thus, another issue analyzed in this chapter is the geographical identification of olive oils to be implemented in a traceability system. Different geographical zones (Italy, Spain, Greece, and other countries from the Mediterranean basin) are considered in the chemical description of their olive oils. Finally, the last two sections are centered on the authentication of olive oil categories and the detection of other edible oils.Peer reviewe