Technological Potential of Avocado Oil: Prospective Study Based on Patent Documents | Bentham Science

摘要

Background: Avocado (Persea Americana, Mill.), belonging to the Lauraceae family,is considered a tropical fruit originating in Central America, with Mexico being the largest producerin the world. The fruit stands out for its economic potential and high nutritional value and itsoil has good commercial value, however, its production is still incipient, being mainly used by thepharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. Despite producing a significant amount of oil, the avocadoseed is still considered a by-product of fruit processing.Methods: Thus, the objective of this work was to evaluate the technological potential of the oilobtained from the avocado and avocado seed through the research and analysis of patent documentsavailable worldwide, in order to identify the main countries that have the technology researchedas well as, the main areas of application. We revised all the patents related to acquisition,application and the use of avocado oil. For this, a search was carried out for the database of theDerwent Innovation Index (DII), which compiles the collection of documents published aroundthe world.Results: A total of 144 patent documents were identified, which were evaluated for the country oforigin of thepublisher, the type of thepublisher, inventors, rate of publication over time and areasof application. There has been an increase in the number of patents producded as of 2011, whichproves it to be a current and interesting technology. The main countries were the United States andthe European Union.Conclusion: The documents identified referred to different processes applied to obtain oil, as wellas the application for the development of new food, cosmetic and veterinary products. In this way,although incipient, the researched technology proved to be a promising area of research to be exploredby universities and companies in view of the characteristics and potential of the product.