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A statistical tool to determine the quality of extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)

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Abstract

EVOO is a fundamental ingredient for the Mediterranean diet representing one of the most important foods made in Italy for its quality and organoleptic properties. The purpose of this study was to classify 119 Italian EVOO samples, analysing values from VIS–NIR spectral data and sensory analysis. To obtain this classification, a multivariate metric index has been realized through the Soft Independent Modeling of Class Analogy (SIMCA) analysing the dataset of oils and classifying them into “Superior quality” and “Standard quality”. The result of the SIMCA has shown a correct classification of the samples, highlighting among those of the “Superior” class also top samples from the qualitative point of view, such as that of the Company “Passo della Palomba” and “Castello di Monte Vibiano Vecchio” who won a medal at the EVOO 2021 World Competition. This matrix index has been a useful tool to classify Italian EVOO samples following of their quality, differentiating the most promising oils from commercial ones and of lower quality.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to acknowledge all the farms which sent free the EVOO to be analyzed. This research was funded by the Italian Ministry of Agriculture (MiPAAF), Grant number D.M. n.12479/2018 of project INFOLIVA.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Consiglio Per La Ricerca in Agricoltura E L’analisi Dell’economia Agraria (CREA)-Centro Di Ricerca Ingegneria E Trasformazioni Agroalimentari, Via della Pascolare 16, Monterotondo, 00015, Rome, Italy

    Simona Violino, Federico Pallottino & Corrado Costa

  2. Dipartimento Di Scienze Delle Produzioni Agroalimentari E Dell’Ambiente (DISPAA), Università Di Firenze, Viale delle Idee, 30, Sesto Fiorentino, 50019, Florence, Italy

    Cosimo Taiti

  3. Faculty of BioScience and Technology for Food, Agriculture and Environment, University of Teramo, Via Renato Balzarini 1, 64100, Teramo, Italy

    Elettra Marone

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  1. Simona Violino
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  2. Cosimo Taiti
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  3. Elettra Marone
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  4. Federico Pallottino
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  5. Corrado Costa
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Correspondence to Corrado Costa.

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Violino, S., Taiti, C., Marone, E. et al. A statistical tool to determine the quality of extra virgin olive oil (EVOO). Eur Food Res Technol 248, 2825–2832 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00217-022-04092-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00217-022-04092-x

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