Monitoring the fatty acid and volatile compositions of Tunisian virgin olive oils using HS-SPME–GC–MS with regard to growing area

Fruits from the same cultivar of Olea europaea L. cv. Chaaibi were picked at the same ripeness stage and processed quickly across varied environmental conditions in Tunisia. Solid-phase micro-extraction (SPME) coupled with gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) were used to determine the aroma profile of virgin olive oils. The volatile profiling was mostly constituted of compounds from the following chemical classes: esters, aldehydes, alcohols, and hydrocarbons. Significant variances in the percentages of volatile constituents in oils from diverse geographical origins were discovered, with the aldehyde (E)-2-hexenal being the predominant volatile in almost half of the oil samples. The findings imply that, in addition to genetics, growing area impacts aroma composition. Remarkably, the proportions of volatile compounds and fatty acid compositions in oils collected from different growing areas exhibited strong variability. These findings can be utilized to distinguish and describe Chaaibi olive oils from various areas.