Chemical analysis narrows down its gap to meet the outflow of olive oils in Baixo Alentejo
Caio Alves
Published 2020년 9월 29일
Association increases response to the needs of olive and olive oil producers in Baixo Alentejo region.
A recent acquisition of lab equipment to offer olive oil analysis increase the capacity of the region to meet the needs of producers and to haste the outflow of qualified products into the market. This enables a large part of the analytical tests necessary for the classification of olive oil as extra virgin, virgin or "lampante", possible within the Association, by setting categories defined in regulations. That will eventually bring more logistic conveniences to portuguese manufacturers. Also it will be possible to assess the quality and purity of the oil, directing produced oils down to their more suitable chains. Relevant to say It is also possible to determine the content of natural antioxidant components relevant to health, that is, total polyphenols and hydroxytyrosol, tyrosol and oleuropein in olives and oils in the same lab.
Quality testing of the olive is one of the main scopes for such investment, whose results can point out failures during the production, processing and storage process, which may lead to a devaluation of the oil produced, and also problems of purity that may result from accidental contamination or fraud . The available tests also supports the certification of olive oil that is destined for export channels, mainly to Brazil. Yet, it serves as a tool to support the decision-making process about the ideal time for harvesting. They allow the monitoring of the yield and quality of the olives throughout the campaign, as well as the determination of oil losses in the bagasse.
To ensure and attest to the quality of the laboratory's results, ACOS applied for accreditation by the NP EN ISO / IEC 17025 standard, which was obtained in 2015. Accreditation under this standard is an acknowledgment of the laboratory's technical competence and requires a control permanent quality of the tests performed. This quality control implies, among other procedures, the participation in interlaboratory comparison tests, in which the test organizer sends the same sample to several laboratories around the world, comparing and evaluating the results obtained.
A recent acquisition of lab equipment to offer olive oil analysis increase the capacity of the region to meet the needs of producers and to haste the outflow of qualified products into the market. This enables a large part of the analytical tests necessary for the classification of olive oil as extra virgin, virgin or "lampante", possible within the Association, by setting categories defined in regulations. That will eventually bring more logistic conveniences to portuguese manufacturers. Also it will be possible to assess the quality and purity of the oil, directing produced oils down to their more suitable chains. Relevant to say It is also possible to determine the content of natural antioxidant components relevant to health, that is, total polyphenols and hydroxytyrosol, tyrosol and oleuropein in olives and oils in the same lab.
Quality testing of the olive is one of the main scopes for such investment, whose results can point out failures during the production, processing and storage process, which may lead to a devaluation of the oil produced, and also problems of purity that may result from accidental contamination or fraud . The available tests also supports the certification of olive oil that is destined for export channels, mainly to Brazil. Yet, it serves as a tool to support the decision-making process about the ideal time for harvesting. They allow the monitoring of the yield and quality of the olives throughout the campaign, as well as the determination of oil losses in the bagasse.
To ensure and attest to the quality of the laboratory's results, ACOS applied for accreditation by the NP EN ISO / IEC 17025 standard, which was obtained in 2015. Accreditation under this standard is an acknowledgment of the laboratory's technical competence and requires a control permanent quality of the tests performed. This quality control implies, among other procedures, the participation in interlaboratory comparison tests, in which the test organizer sends the same sample to several laboratories around the world, comparing and evaluating the results obtained.
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