Cultivar differences on nonesterified polyunsaturated fatty acid as a limiting factor for the biogenesis of virgin olive oil aroma.

The relationship between the content of nonesterified polyunsaturated fatty acids and the contents of oil aroma compounds that arise during the process to obtain virgin olive oil (VOO) was studied in two olive cultivars, Picual and Arbequina, producing oils with distinct aroma profiles and fatty acid compositions. Results suggest that the biosynthesis of VOO aroma compounds depends mainly on the availability of nonesterified polyunsaturated fatty acids, especially linolenic acid, during the process and then on the enzymatic activity load of the lipoxygenase/hydroperoxide lyase system. Both availability of substrates and enzymatic activity load seem to be cultivar-dependent.