Discrimination of commercial cheeses from fatty acid profiles and phytosterol contents obtained by GC and PCA

•The fatty acid profiles and phytosterol contents of commercial cheeses were analysed.•The results were compared by principal component analysis (PCA), respectively.•Natural mozzarella cheese class was distinct to imitated mozzarella cheese class.•The PC and MC classes were not completely separated from NMC and IMC classes. In this study, a method for discriminating natural mozzarella cheese from cheese substitutes, using fatty acid profiles, phytosterol contents, and statistical comparison, was developed. A total of 27 cheeses were evaluated: eight natural mozzarella cheeses (NMCs), four imitation mozzarella cheeses (IMCs), 12 processed cheeses (PCs) and three mixed cheeses (MCs) composed of NMCs and IMCs. The fatty acid composition of the NMC class was distinct from those of the IMC and MC classes, but statistically similar (p