The Effect of Plant Essential Oil and Extracts on Fatty Acid Profile of Virgin Olive Oil Stored in Different Packaging Materials

Abstract

IntroductionOlive Olea europaea L. fruits have been grown to produce oil and table olives and the genus olea is a member of the family Oleaceae 1 . Virgin olive oil VOO is a valuable product due to be a significant source of fatty acids and natural antioxidants, including phenolic compounds and tocopherols 2 . High amount of mono-unsaturated fatty acids, especially oleic acid, increase the stability and decrease the susceptibility of oil against chemical reactions. The properties of olive, crushing and malaxation technics and storage conditions effect the quality of virgin olive oil. One of the most important reaction is lipid oxidation, which reduces the nutritional value and shelf life, and also changes appearance and flavor of oil 3 . Temperature, light, oxygen, packaging, and storage duration cause the changes some properties of virgin olive oil 4 . The polyunsaturated fatty acids reduce the resistance to oxidation 5 7 . Asensio et al. 8 studied the preserving effect of oregano Origanum vulgare L. spp. vulgare essential oil on physical and chemical properties in extra virgin olive oil during storage. Also, M Hir et al. 9 investigated the antioxidant activity of