Characterisation of virgin olive oils obtained from three different cultivars grown in the Albanian territory

Chemical characterisation was carried out on samples of virgin olive oil obtained from three different cultivars, which were cultivated in three geographic areas of the Albanian territory. Two cultivars were typical of Albania (Kalinjoti and UBT Tirane), while the third was originally from Spain (Arbequina). The olives, that came from three different geographical areas (in Albania) were obtained during the 2016-2017 harvesting season. Several evaluations have been carried out in order to determine qualitative parameters (free acidity, peroxide value and UV spectrophotometric indices), chemical composition of three classes of compounds (fatty acids, phenols and tocopherols) and genuineness (AECN42) of the analysed olive oils. The obtained results showed the Arbequina and UBT Tirane cultivars characterised by significantly higher acidity values than those observed in Kalinjoti cultivar, which showed lower values also regarding the number of peroxides. No variations were instead evidenced in the UV spectrophotometric indices. Regarding the fatty acid profiles, the Arbequina cultivar grown in the Albanian territory resulted poorer of w9 isomer of oleic acid but, at the same time, showed greater concentrations of the w7 isomer. The UBT Tirane was instead characterised by a lower content of linoleic acid compared to the other two cultivars. A further parameter worthy of attention concerned the total content of polyphenols, which are present at particularly higher concentrations in the Kalinjoti cultivar, whereas tochopherols seem to be more represented in the UBT Tirane. This work, as a whole, has highlighted the undoubted strengths of Kalinjoti cultivar, which has been characterised by parameters that should guarantee superior health properties, and therefore should be of more interest for the consumer.