Comparative study of quality parameters of extra virgin olive oil from different regions of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the physical and chemical characteristics of Pendallino olive cultivar oils from from the various cities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to identify and compare the oils with international standard defined by Olive Oil Council (IOOC) for Virgin olive oil. The olive fruits were taken from the specific regions of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa i.e. Bajaur, Karak, Lower Dir and Peshawar. Virgin olive Oils (VOO) were extracted by pressing and centrifuging of olive fruits with three-phase vertical decanter. The extracted virgin olive oil was studied for various physiochemical properties and fatty acid profile. The Physical and chemical properties i.e., acidity, peroxide, ultraviolet spectrophotometric analysis (k232 and k270), total phenol content, chlorophyll pigment were under the acceptable range, established by European regulation for virgin olive oil. Olive oil was analyzed by GC gas-chromatography for fatty acids commonly present in olive oils which are: palmitic, palmitoleic, stearic, oleic, linoleic, linolenic, and arachidic. Oleic acid was found in high percentage ranged from (60.3 to 74.3%), followed by linoleic, palmitic, stearic, palmitoleic and linolenic. Arachidic acid was found in a very low percentage in all olive oil samples. Total phenol contents ware ranged from 114 to 125 mg/kg. The International Olive Oil Council's (IOOC) criteria for pureness and excellence was used as a standard for the calculated values of the samples. The samples had significant physical and chemical properties and can be used as edible oil. The Lower Dir cultivar particularly demonstrated the qualities of a superior of olive oil.