Volatile Compounds Characterising Tunisian Virgin Olive Oils: The Influence Of Cultivar

P>In this work, the volatile profiles of four Tunisian virgin olive oils were established by headspace-solid phase microextraction and gas chromatography, using flame ionisation and mass spectrometer detectors. More than eighty compounds were isolated and characterised, representing 97-99% of the total GC area. The main volatile compounds present in the oil samples were determined quantitatively, the major constituents were often aldehydes, particularly (E)-2-hexenal (48-90%). Significant differences in the content of volatile constituents were observed. These quantitative differences were used to distinguish between virgin olive oils from different varieties.