INTEGRATED PROCESS FOR THE ECO-SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION OF HIGH QUALITY EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL AND MICRONIZED BY PRODUCTS

摘要

The invention relates to an integrated process for the eco-sustainable production of extra virgin olive oil and solid by-products rich in polyphenols, according to the principles of the circular economy. The multifunctional process starts from Olea europaea L, and produces an extra virgin olive oil (EVO) with a high content of hydroxytyrosol and derivatives, and wherein the stoned and de-oiled olive pomace leaving the mill from a two-phase controlled process, is directly transformed into a powder product useful in the food and nutraceutical field, with a high content of antioxidant active principles. Even the leaves and apical twigs resulting from the olive harvest are treated directly in the mill to obtain a standardized powder product in the content of oleuropein, the bitter active ingredient of the fruit, a cardioprotective molecule with an antioxidant character.