A method for the determination of the composition of carotenoids of tomato fruits of different colors is proposed using a combination of spectrophotometry and chromatography. An explanation of the elution order of mono-cis-isomers of lycopene under the conditions of reversed-phase chromatography on traditional “monomeric” reversed C18-phases is proposed for the first time. It was found that, for prolycopene, (7Z, 9Z, 7'Z, 9'Z)-lycopene, which is responsible for the orange color of fruits, there is an almost imperceptible transition in normal examination in the vibronic structure of the electronic absorption spectrum with the lowest energy, λmax(1) = 486.2 n
