Chlorophylls and Carotenoids in Food Products from Olive Tree

Abstract

This chapter provides an updated overview about the chlorophyll and carotenoid pigments present in olive fruits and their products, table olive, and olive oil. The metabolism of these pigments during growth and ripening of the olive fruit is described. General aspects related to photosynthetic tissues and non-carotenogenic fruits, varieties and the presence of exclusive pigments, the total pigment content, and their relative proportions are highlighted. Chlorophyll and carotenoid changes during the processing of green table olives according to the main styles of preparation are described. Diferent reaction mechanisms depending on the removal of the biter components by alkaline hydrolysis or by slow difusion in brine, as well as the development of the fermentation process, are discussed. The chlorophyll degradation associated with the green staining alteration is speciically mentioned. Changes in the pigment proiles and in their concentrations associated with the virgin olive oil VOO) elaboration are also described. Recent research works related to thermal degradation kinetics and prediction mathematical model for VOO storage are summarized. The role of the chlorophylls in the photo-oxidation of VOO is also pointed out. Finally, the pigment proiles as authenticity and freshness indices for VOO quality are emphasized.Keywords: chlorophylls, carotenoids, metabolism, table olive, olive oil . IntroductionThe olive fruit Olea europaea L.) is a small drupe that has a long ripening period involving important color changes. There are numerous varieties of olives, which are classiied into three categories according to their use: table olives, oil extraction, or both purposes. Olive fruit contains © 2016 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.© 2016 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.water 60 70%), lipids 10 25%), sugars 3 6%), iber 1 4%), proteins 1 3%), and other minor compounds, such as hydrocarbons, biophenols, terpenes, sterols, alcohols, chlorophyll and carotenoid pigments, and volatile compounds, which are responsible for the unique characteristics of its products [1]. The quality of table olives and olive oil depend on the chemical composition and physical properties of the fruit, and this in turn is principally related to the olive variety, degree of fruit ripeness, environmental conditions, growing region, and processing and storage techniques. These factors inluence the color of the table olive and olive oil, which is one of the most important quality atributes for products from the olive tree. In the case of ...

Pigments in extra virgin olive oils produced in different mediterranean countries in 2014: Near UV-vis spectroscopy versus HPLC-DAD

“…As already known (Gandul-Rojas, Roca, & Gallardo-Guerrero, 2016 and reference therein), the amount of pigments in olive oils is affected by the ripeness stage of olives. The maturity of olives before oil production is also related to the climate conditions.…”

“…In case of early ripeness stages, our results indicate a higher ratio, reaching the value of 3.3 for sample S 2, which reflects the high concentration of pheophytin A with respect to all other pigments. The differences among Spanish EVOOs can be explained based on the known differences among cultivars (Gandul-Rojas, Roca, & Gallardo-Guerrero, 2016;and references therein;Domenici et al, 2014). Greek EVOOs were produced from olives at the first stages of maturity (G and LG) from Koroneiki variety, one of the most important cultivar in Greece for the production of olive oils.…”

“…Among pigments, chlorophylls are usually present in the form of pheophytins; pheophytin A is the most predominant one, while chlorophylls can be found in fresh olive oils. Carotenoid fraction is dominated by -carotene and lutein, while other carotenoids, namely the xanthophylls, such as criptoxanthin, violaxanthin, neoxanthin and others, can be found in smaller amount (Gandul-Rojas, Roca & Gallardo-Guerrero, 2016).…”

Bioactive Compounds and Quality of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

“…The final concentration of each pigment in the final EVOO relies on the physicochemical characteristics of the fruit, the geographic origin, climate and irrigation conditions and the mechanic extraction process used. Storage conditions and final packaging also play a role in pigment concentration and type [96,99,100].…”

Avocado–Soybean Unsaponifiables: A Panoply of Potentialities to Be Exploited

“…Chlorophyll is an ester of chlorophyllic acid and phytol alcohol [39]. It occurs in several distinct forms; chlorophylls a and b are the major types typical of higher plants and green algae; chlorophylls c and d are found in different algae.…”