Shelf life of extra-virgin olive oils: First efforts toward a prediction model

摘要

Seven cultivars of extra-virgin olive oils (EVOOs) with different contents of natural antioxidants were analysed to evaluate the influence of storage time on EVOO quality. The EVOOs were stored in 1-L-volume green glass bottles at room temperature (15-18 ℃) and with the same area of exposure to air. The main chemical, physicochemical, and sensory characteristics related to quality were determined for these EVOOs every 2 months, over a total period of 12 months. Under these storage conditions, all of the EVOOs showed gradual loss of quality. Based on these EVOO characteristics, the shelf-life was approximated to between 10 and 12 months, which is a lot shorter than the 18 months that is currently used for the expiry period. Moreover, this study developed an analytical method to predict the remaining shelf-life of individual marketed EVOOs. This is based on statistical analysis of the accurate analytical data for the EVOOs.