The nutraceutical properties of extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) can be further improved by the addition of olive leaves during olive pressing. However, while Citrus leaves are rich sources of bioactive substances, no data are available in the literature about the effect of Citrus leaf addition on the nutraceutical and sensorial profiles of olive oil. This study aimed at comparing the chemical and sensorial qualities of olive oils obtained from ripe olives pressed together with either Olea or Citrus spp. (lemon or orange) cryomacerated leaves. General composition parameters as well as major antioxidants and antioxidant activity were measured. A panel test evaluation, as well as headspace volatile characterization (headspace solid phase microextraction, HS-SPME), were also performed. All data were compared with an EVOO extracted from the same olive batch used as control. It was possible to obtain Leaf Olive Oils (LOOs) characterized by a higher (p < 0.05) content of antioxidants, compared to the control sample, and the highest oleuropein concentration was detected in the olive oil extracted in presence of olive leaf (+50% in comparison with the control). All the LOOs showed a higher smell complexity and the scent of ripe fruit was generally mitigated. Lemon and olive LOOs showed the best smell profile.

Linseed (Linum usitatissimum L.) is becoming more and more important in the health food market as a functional food, since its seeds and oil represent a rich source of bioactive compounds. Its chemical composition is strongly correlated with, and dependent on, genetic characteristics. The aim of this study was to evaluate the variation in seed yield, oil content, fatty acid composition and secondary metabolite profiles between a low-linolenic linseed variety, belonging to the Solin-type group (Solal), and a high-linolenic traditional one (Bethune), cultivated, both as spring crops, in open field conditions of Central Italy. The achieved results pointed out the different behavior of the two varieties in terms of growth cycle, oil content, and some important yield components, such as capsule number per plant and thousand seed weight. There were also significant differences in seed composition regarding total phenols, total flavonoids, antioxidant activities as well as in carotenoid, tocopherol, and tocotrienol profiles between the two varieties. In particular, Solal was characterized by the greatest contents of oil, phenols, flavonoids, α- and δ- tocotrienol, together with the highest antioxidant activity. Bethune, on the contrary, showed the highest amounts of carotenoids (lutein and β-carotene). These results indicate a clear effect of the genetic characteristics on the biosynthesis of these secondary metabolites and, consequently, on the related antioxidant activity. Our findings suggest that the mutation process, responsible for the selection of the low-linolenic cultivar, is able to modify the biosynthetic pathways of carotenoids and phenolics.

This research aimed to study the effects of packaging and storage temperature on the shelf-life of an extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) as it can occur in most points of sale. The evolution of the chemical and sensory characteristics of an EVOO, initially stored in stainless steel silos under nitrogen at 12–18 °C, was evaluated after packaging. Tinplate tin (TT) and greenish glass (GG), the most used packaging containers, and temperatures of 6 and 26 °C were taken into consideration. After 125 days from packaging all the samples maintained clearness, green and yellow reflections and the positive sensory notes of bitterness and pungency of the starting EVOO. Shelf-life of EVOO was significantly affected by different storage conditions: oil samples stored in GG at 6 °C preserved for the most part the positive attributes, whereas those stored in TT at 26 °C showed a significant presence of the rancid flavor due to oxidative processes. Moreover, samples stored in GG at 6 °C maintained the highest bitterness intensity and did not show defects at the end of the storage period. The results suggest that storage in GG at a low temperature could represent a promising storage condition to slow-down the oil degradation during market storage.

While in the last few years the use of olive cake and mill wastewater as natural sources of phenolic compounds has been widely considered and several studies have focused on the development of new extraction methods and on the production of functional foods enriched with natural antioxidants, no data has been available on the production of a phenol-enriched refined olive oil with its own phenolic compounds extracted from wastewater produced during physical refining. In this study; we aimed to: (i) verify the effectiveness of a multi-step extraction process to recover the high-added-value phenolic compounds contained in wastewater derived from the preliminary washing degumming step of the physical refining of vegetal oils; (ii) evaluate their potential application for the stabilization of olive oil obtained with refined olive oils; and (iii) evaluate their antioxidant activity in an in vitro model of endothelial cells. The results obtained demonstrate the potential of using the refining wastewater as a source of bioactive compounds to improve the nutraceutical value as well as the antioxidant capacity of commercial olive oils. In the conditions adopted, the phenolic content significantly increased in the prototypes of phenol-enriched olive oils when compared with the control oil.

The essential oils extracted from the peels of two Tuscany Citrus of the Massa province have been characterised. Moreover, the flavedo of these species has been used in the production of two Citrus olive oils (COOs) obtained with an innovative method in which the citrus peels are cryomacerated and then pressed with the olives. The presence of functional compounds, such as carotenoids, naringenin and minor phenolics, classifies these COOs as nutraceuticals with the potential to develop enriched foods able to promote a healthy diet. Moreover, the increased presence of tyrosol and hydroxytyrosol, compared to the unflavoured oil, further highlights the nutritional value to the two COOs, being these phenolic compounds recognized as good possible therapeutic candidates for the inhibition of neurodegenerative diseases as the Parkinson’s disease. In this perspective, the citrus peels, rich in bioactive compounds, have been valued transforming their waste nature in an innovative resource.