Aflatoxins in sunflower seeds and unrefined sunflower oils from Singida,Tanzania

A total of 61 samples comprising sunflower seeds (40) and unrefined sunflower oils (21) samples collected randomly from Singida, Tanzania were analysed by Reverse Phase-high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC). 15% (6/40) of the seed samples were contaminated with aflatoxin B₁ ranging from limit of detection (LOD) to 218 ng g^?1 with three of them exceeding the European Commission/European Union (EC/EU) and Tanzania Bureau of Standards (TBS)/Tanzania Food and Drug Authority (TFDA) maximum limits of 2 ng g^?1 for AFB₁ in oilseeds. The levels of total aflatoxins (AFT) in seeds ranged from LOD to 243 ng g^?1. Other aflatoxins, except AFG₂, were also detected. For the unrefined sunflower oils, the levels of AFB₁ ranged from LOD to 2.56 ng mL^?1. About 80.9% (17/21) of the analysed oil samples contained AFB₁ of which 17.65% (3/17) exceeded the EC/EU and TBS/TFDA maximum limits of 2 ng mL^?1. Other aflatoxins were also detected in the oils. The measured levels indicate there is a need for food quality education among food processors.     

A novel spectrophotometric method for quantitative determination of lactulose in food industries

A sensitive and simple spectrophotometric method for quantification of lactulose without interference from aldoses was developed. The method was based on hydrolysis of lactulose under acidic conditions. The hydrolysed product reacts with cysteine hydrochloride‐tryptophon reagent, giving an absorption peak at 518 nm. By following the conditions optimised in this paper, the absorbance value generated by lactose or galactose was far less than that of lactulose of the same amount, suggesting that the interference from aldoses for determination of lactulose could be neglected. The calibration curve was linear in the range of 5–25 μg mL^?1 with a correlation coefficient of 0.999. The limit of detection of lactulose at 518 nm was 0.58 μg mL^?1. The variation between the results for lactulose (18 μg mL^?1) was 1.02%. These facts revealed that the method can be recommended for the quantitative determination of lactulose in case of syrups, biological fluids or dairy products.     

Benzo[a]pyrene and total polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) levels in vegetable oils and fats do not reflect the occurrence of the eight genotoxic PAHs

Concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were determined in 115 samples of olive oil (extra virgin olive oil, virgin olive oil, olive oil, pomace olive oil and blended olive oil), cooking oil (corn oil, sunflower oil, sesame oil, palm olein oil, soya oil, canola oil, mustard oil, peanut oil and mixed vegetable oil) and fat (butter and table margarine) collected from retail stores in Kuwait. Carcinogenic benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) was detected in 43% of the samples analyzed. Benz[a]anthracene and chrysene were detected in 37 and 45% of the samples, respectively, that did not contain BaP. Of the individual non-carcinogenic PAHs, naphthalene showed the highest mean concentration (14 µg kg^?1), while for the carcinogenic PAHs, BaP (0.92 µg kg^?1) and chrysene (0.87 µg kg^?1) showed the highest mean values. Approximately 20% of the samples within the olive oil and cooking oil sub-categories exceeded the EU maximum tolerable limit for BaP, with the highest level of 6.77 and 11.1 µg kg^?1, respectively. For the fat sub-category, 9% of the samples exceeded the tolerance limit, with the highest level of 3.67 µg kg^?1. The Kuwaiti general population's dietary exposure to the genotoxic PAHs (PAH8: benz[a]anthracene, chrysene, benzo[b]fluoranthene, benzo[k]fluoranthene, benzo[a]pyrene, indeno[1,2,3-cd]pyrene, dibenz[a,h]anthracene and benzo[ghi]perylene) was estimated to be 196 ng day^?1 (3.3 ng kg^?1 bw day^?1, assuming an average adult body weight of 60 kg). Results indicated that PAH8 and BaP_eq (total sum benzo[a]pyrene equivalents) are more reliable measures of the concentrations of other carcinogenic PAHs in oil and fat samples, while BaP and PAHs alone are not good indicators of the occurrence or degree of contamination by carcinogenic PAHs in these food products.     

Antibacterial and antioxidant activities of the essential oil and methanol extracts of Bidens frondosa Linn

Antibacterial and antioxidant potential of essential oil, extract and its fractions of Bidens frondosa Linn were evaluated. Sixty‐one components representing 95.41% of the total oil were identified. The essential oil (7.5 μL disc^?1), methanol extract and its different organic subfractions (0.5 μg disc^?1) of B. frondosa displayed a great potential of antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 6538 and KCTC 1916), Listeria monocytogenes ATCC 19116, Bacillus subtilis ATCC 6633, Pseudomonas aeruginosa KCTC 2004, Salmonella enteritidis KCTC 12021 and Enterobacter aerogenes KCTC 2190. Antioxidant activity was evaluated by using 1,1‐diphenyl‐2‐picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay. The free radical scavenging activity of ethyl acetate (EtOAc) fraction was superior to all other fractions (IC₅₀ = 11.96 μg mL^?1), which was higher than synthetic antioxidant butylated hydroxyanisole, (IC₅₀ = 18.27 μg mL^?1). Furthermore, the amount of total phenolic compounds was determined and its content in EtOAc fraction was the highest as compared to methanol extract or other fractions. The results indicate that the oil and extracts of B. frondosa could serve as an important bio‐resource of antimicrobial agents and antioxidants for using in the food industries.     

Chemical composition and in vitro control of agricultural plant pathogens by the essential oil and various extracts of Nandina domestica Thunb.

BACKGROUND: The aims of this study were to examine the chemical composition of the essential oil isolated from the floral parts of Nandina domestica Thunb. by hydrodistillation, and to test the efficacy of essential oil and various leaf extracts (n‐hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate and methanol) as an antifungal potential against a panel of agricultural plant pathogens. RESULTS: The GC‐MS analysis determined that 79 compounds, which represented 87.06% of total oil, were present in the oil containing mainly 1‐indolizino carbazole (19.65%), 2‐pentanone (16.4%), mono phenol (12.1%), aziridine (9.01%), methylcarbinol (4.6%), ethanone (3.3%), furfural (2.96%), 3,5‐dimethylpyrazole (1.29%) and 2(5H)‐furanone (1.32%). The oil (1000 ppm disc^?1) and the leaf extracts (1500 ppm disc^?1) revealed remarkable antifungal effect against Fusarium oxysporum, Fusarium solani, Phytophthora capsici, Colletotrichum capsici, Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, Botrytis cinerea and Rhizoctonia solani in the growth inhibition range of 53.3–64.3% and 33.3–56.0%, respectively, along with their respective values for mimimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) ranging from 125 to 1000 µg mL^?1 and 500 to 2000 µg mL^?1. The values for minimal fungicidal concentration (MFC) of the oil and extracts were obtained in the range of 125 to 1000 µg mL^?1 and 500 to 2000 µg mL^?1, respectively. The essential oil also had a strong detrimental effect on spore germination of all the plant pathogens tested along with concentration as well as time‐dependent kinetic inhibition of B. cinerea. CONCLUSION: The results obtained in this study demonstrate that N. domestica mediated oil and extracts could become potential alternatives to synthetic fungicides for controlling certain important agricultural plant pathogenic fungi. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry     

Antioxidant and Antihemolytic Activities of Ethanolic Extract of Flowers,Leaves, and Stems of Hyssopus officinalis L. Var. angustifolius

In this study, antioxidant and antihemolytic activities of ethanolic extract of flowers, leaves, and stems of Hyssopus officinalis L. Var. angustifolius were investigated employing different in vitro assay systems. Extracts showed good antioxidant activity. IC₅₀ for 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl hydrazyl radical-scavenging activity were 148.8 ± 4.31 μg mL^?1 for flowers, 79.9 ± 2.63 μg mL^?1 for stems, and 208.2 ± 6.45 μg mL^?1 for leaves. All extracts showed moderate iron (II) chelating ability. Extracts exhibited good antioxidant activity in the hemoglobin-induced linoleic acid model and also they were capable of scavenging hydrogen peroxide in a concentration dependent manner. Extracts showed good antihemolytic activity againts hydrogen peroxide-induced hemolysis (IC₅₀ were 48.51 ± 2.27 μg mL^?1 for flowers, 19.47 ± 0.73 μg mL^?1 for leaves, and 63.1 ± 2.65 μg mL^?1 for stems). The total amount of phenolic compounds in the extracts was determined as gallic acid equivalents and total flavonoid content was calculated as quercetin equivalents from a calibration curve.     

In vitro antioxidant and antiproliferative activity of three rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) extract formulations

Antioxidant and antiproliferative activities of three rosemary extract formulations (VivOX 20, VivOX 40 and Inolens 50) with different contents of carnosic acid, carnosol and methylcarnosol were tested in vitro. Electron spin resonance measurements revealed that Inolens 50 extract that contained highest amount of carnosic acid was the most potent scavenger of hydroxyl (concentration of extract where 50% of its maximal scavenging activity is observed, that is, EC₅₀, 109.54 μg mL^?1), superoxide anion (EC₅₀ = 7.94 μg mL^?1) and 2,2‐diphenyl‐1‐picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) (EC₅₀ = 27.4 μg mL^?1)‐free radicals. Comparison of the radar charts of standard antioxidants and rosemary extracts showed similarity between antioxidant characteristics of Inolens 50 and chlorogenic and caffeic acids. Tested rosemary extracts exhibited significant (P ≤ 0.01) antiproliferative effect in cervix epitheloid carcinoma (HeLa), breast adenocarcinoma (MCF7) and colon adenocarcinoma (HT‐29) cell lines. In both MCF7 and HeLa cell lines, the extracts yielded very low IC₅₀ values (concentration of extract needed to inhibit cell growth by 50%), the most pronounced being for Inolens 50 in MCF7 (IC₅₀ = 9.95 μg mL^?1) and VivOX 20 in HeLa cell line (IC₅₀ = 10.02 μg mL^?1). The obtained results may provide support for the use of tested rosemary extracts as nutraceuticals and phytopharmaceuticals.     

Effect of frying oil quality and TBHQ on the shelf-life of potato crisps

Three different systems were used for the evaluation of the effect of frying oil quality and tertiarybutyl hydroquinone (TBHQ) on the shelf-life of fried potato crisps. Batches of potato slices were fried for 4 min at 30 min intervals over a period of 5 h day^?1 for eight consecutive days in refined, bleached and deodorised palm olein (RBD olein) without antioxidant (system 1); RBD containing 200 μg g^?1 TBHQ at the start of the experiment (system 2) and RBD olein which had TBHQ topped up to a level of 200 μg g^?1 at the start of each frying day (system 3). Sensory evaluation of crisps showed that there is an initial rapid decrease in shelf-life with increase in fry number in all systems. There was only a comparatively smaller effect on shelf-life with increase in fry number in later fryings. When the shelf-life of crisps was related to the quality of oil in the frying medium, it was found that the shelf-life of the product is only slightly affected when the oil had deteriorated beyond the acceptable limit of quality of frying oil, where the acceptable limit was taken as 27-30% polar components and 1–2 mg potassium hydroxide g^?1 oil. TBHQ does have a protective carry-through effect. The protective effect is more pronounced when TBHQ is topped up to a level of 200 μg g^?1 at the beginning of each frying day.     

Preparation,antioxidant activity and protective effect of coconut testa oil extraction on oxidative damage to human serum albumin

Extraction, physicochemical properties and fatty acid composition analysis of coconut testa oil (CTO), antioxidant activity and the protective effect on oxidative damage to human serum albumin (HSA) of coconut testa oil extract (CTOE) were investigated. Results showed that the optimal extract condition of CTO was B₃A₂C₂ (temperature of 60 °C, material‐to‐solvent of 1:4 g mL^?1 and extraction time of 3 h) with the maximum oil yield (76.83 ± 0.53%). The obtained CTO was nondrying oil with iodine value of 14.69 g per 100 g, and lauric acid was the main component of 42.28%. Hydrogen peroxide scavenging activity of CTOE can reach to 49.81% at 2.5 mg mL^?1, while antioxidant activity (AA) on the oxidation of linoleic acid dropped from 56.82% to 31.70% during the first 80 min. CTOE could prevent HSA from oxidative damage induced by hydrogen peroxide via inhibiting the formation of protein carbonyl and increase of hydroperoxides content effectively. Total phenolic content was 68 mg g^?1, and the epicatechin and catechin were 2.74 and 2.26 mg g^?1 in its phenolic compositions, respectively. These all suggested CTO and CTOE might be new worthy exploiting functional sources.     

Aflatoxin M1 in raw milk and aflatoxin B1 in feed from household cows in Singida,Tanzania

Aflatoxin M₁ (AFM₁) contamination in raw milk from household cows fed with sunflower seedcakes or sunflower-based seedcake feeds was determined in 37 milk samples collected randomly from different locations in Singida region, Tanzania. Aflatoxin B₁ (AFB₁) contamination in sunflower-based seedcake feed was determined in 20 feed samples collected from the same household dairy farmers. The samples were analysed by RP-HPLC using fluorescent detection after immunoaffinity column clean-up. Recoveries were 88.0% and 94.5%, while the limits of detection (LOD) were 0.026 ng mL^?1 and 0.364 ng g^?1 for AFM₁ and AFB₁, respectively. Of the analysed cow’s milk samples, 83.8% (31/37) contained AFM₁, with levels ranging from LOD to 2.007 ng mL^?1, exceeding both the European Commission (EC) and Tanzania Food and Drug Authority (TFDA) limit of 0.05 ng mL^?1. Of the contaminated samples, 16.1% exceeded the Codex Alimentarius limit of 0.5 ng mL^?1. AFB₁ was present in 65% (13/20) of the feed samples with levels ranging from LOD to 20.47 ng g^?1, 61.53% exceeding the TFDA and EC maximum limits of 5 ng g^?1 for complete dairy animal feed. The observed AFM₁ and AFB₁ contamination necessitates the need to raise awareness to dairy farmers in Tanzania to safeguard the health of the end-users.     

Quantitative analysis of styrene monomer in foods. A limited East Australian Survey

The levels of styrene monomer in foods packaged in polystyrene containers were determined by a headspace gas chromatography (g.c.) method and two reversed phase high-performance liquid chromatography (h.p.l.c.) methods. A total of 146 samples were analysed from Victoria and New South Wales which included yoghurt, cream, cheese, dessert, ice cream, egg white, onion dip and margarine. The highest level of styrene found was 0.1 mg kg^?1 in yoghurt. About 85% of all yoghurt samples were found to have values less than 0.05 mg kg^?1. The lowest values of styrene obtained were for margarine samples, of which more than 90% contained less than 0.010 mg kg^?1. The estimated limits of detection of the h.p.l.c. methods for all products except margarine were 0.005 mg kg^?1. The h.p.l.c. detection limit for margarine and the g.c. method for yoghurt were estimated to be 0.01 mg kg^?1.     

Solvent effects on antioxidant properties of persimmon (Diospyros kaki L. cv. Daebong) seeds

The aim of this study was to investigate the antioxidant activities of persimmon seed extracts (PSE) using different solvents such as ethanol, methanol, acetone, and their aqueous 80% solvents. The EC₅₀ values of the extracts from absolute ethanol (EE) and methanol (ME) in 2, 2‐diphenyl‐1‐picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical–scavenging assay were 49.71 and 51.15 μg mL^?1, respectively, while the EC₅₀ of butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) was 70.82 μg mL^?1. However, the EC₅₀ value of reducing power for the absolute acetone extract (AE) was higher (210.06 μg mL^?1) than that of BHA (212.67 μg mL^?1). Although the absolute ME had the highest antioxidant activity, it exhibited the lowest total phenolics and flavonoids. In contrast, the antioxidant activities of the aqueous solvent extracts showed a good correlation with total phenolics and flavonoids when compared to the absolute solvent extracts. The results showed that PSE could potentially be used as an inexpensive source of natural antioxidant in food and pharmaceutical industries.     

Furan in canned sardines and other fish

Thirty-seven different samples of canned sardines and other fish sold in the United Kingdom were analysed for their furan content using a validated automated headspace gas chromatography–mass spectrometry procedure. All 37 samples contained detectable furan, with an average level of 26 μg kg^?1. The maximum furan content was in canned fish containing tomato sauce, which had an average of 49 μg kg^?1 and in canned fish packed with lemon which had an average of 55 μg kg^?1. All fish in brine or in oil contained less than 20 μg kg^?1 furan. Furan levels recorded in fish packed in extra virgin olive oil were low with an average of 2 μg kg^?1.     

Chemical composition,antioxidant and cytotoxicity activities of the essential oils of Myristica fragrans and Morinda citrifolia

BACKGROUND: In this study the chemical composition, antioxidant activities and cytotoxic effect of the essential oils of Myristica fragrans (nutmeg) and Morinda citrifolia (mengkudu) were determined. RESULTS: Thirty‐eight compounds in nutmeg oil and six compounds in mengkudu oil were identified by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. The free radical scavenging activity of nutmeg oil was superior of that mengkudu oil. The MTT assay of nutmeg oil on human colorectal carcinoma (HCT‐116) and human breast carcinoma (MCF‐7) cell lines showed IC₅₀ values of 78.61 and 66.45 µg mL^?1, respectively. The mengkudu oil exhibited IC₅₀ values of 91.46 and 78.15 µg mL^?1 for HCT‐116 and MCF‐7, respectively. CONCLUSION: The results showed that nutmeg oil can be developed as potent anti‐cancer and antioxidant drugs. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry     

Aflatoxins in sunflower and safflower seeds from Iran

Aflatoxin content of 173 sunflower and safflower seeds was determined by HPLC with immunoaffinity column (IAC) clean-up and fluorometric detection. Aflatoxin B₁ contamination was found in 111 samples: in 8 of the sunflower seed samples (16%) at a mean level of 40.68?ng?g^?1 and in 103 safflower seed samples (83.7%) at a mean level of 2.81?±?0.44?ng?g^?1. In 5 sunflower seed samples and 1 safflower seed sample, aflatoxin B₁ levels were higher than the maximum levels of AFB₁ under Iran regulations (5?ng?g^?1). Aflatoxin B₁ levels in 5 sunflower and 2 safflower seed samples were higher than the European Union maximum limit (2?ng?g^?1).     

Electrochemical behavior of chlorogenic acid at a boron-doped diamond electrode and estimation of the antioxidant capacity in the coffee samples based on its oxidation peak

Abstract: In this study, an electroanalytical methodology for the determination of chlorogenic acid (CGA) was achieved at a boron‐doped diamond electrode under adsorptive transfer stripping voltammetric conditions. The values obtained for CGA were used to estimate the antioxidant properties of the coffee sample based on CGA oxidation. By using square‐wave stripping mode, the compound yielded a well‐defined voltammetric response at +0.49 V with respect to Ag/AgCl in Britton–Robinson buffer at pH 3.0 (after 120 s accumulations at a fixed potential of 0.40 V). At the optimum experimental conditions, linear calibration curve is obtained within the concentration range of 0.25 to 4.0 μg mL^?1 with the limit of detection 0.049 μg mL^?1. The developed protocol was successfully applied for the analysis of antioxidant capacity in the coffee products such as Turkish coffee and instant coffee.     

Ion Chromatographic Determination of Free Cyanide in Different Classes of Bottled Natural Mineral Water Consumed in Turkey

An ion chromatographic method for the quantitative determination of free cyanide in bottled natural mineral waters were measured in terms of selectivity, linearity, the limit of detection, limit of quantification, repeatability, precision, and accuracy. Chromatographic separation of free cyanide ions was accomplished with an anion-exchange column and detected by pulsed amperometric detection with a silver working electrode. The method was found to be selective, linear (r² = 0.999) at a concentration range of 0.5 to 134 μg L^?1, precise, and accurate. Recovery values of free cyanide in all classes of natural mineral water varied from 65.9 ± 1.6 to 95.2 ± 0.7 at different spiking levels (5–70 μg L^?1). Parameters (total dissolved solids, mineral interferences, and added sodium hydroxide) affecting the recovery values were studied in this project. The limit of detection and limit of quantification were found to be 0.295 and 0.983 μg L^?1, respectively. The proposed method was applied to 27 different brands of commercially available bottled natural mineral water products sold in Turkish markets. These natural mineral waters were classified as: (i) very low mineral concentration, (ii) low mineral concentration, (iii) intermediate mineral concentration, and (iv) high mineral concentration based on their total dissolved solids contents according to European Union Directive (Directive 80/777/EEC). Levels of free cyanide residues in the samples ranged from > limit of detection to 6.12 μg L^?1. The highest average concentration of free cyanide residues was found in the class of “high mineral concentration waters.” However, the determined free cyanide values in all of the tested natural mineral water samples were found to be within the limits of European Union legislation.     

Utility of 4-chloro-7-nitrobenzofurazan for the spectrofluorimetric determination of butylated hydroxyanisole and propyl gallate in foodstuffs

Abstract: A spectrofluorimetric method is presented for the determination of 2 synthetic phenolic antioxidants (SPAs), butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA), and propyl gallate (PG) in foodstuffs. The proposed method is based on the derivatization of SPAs with 4‐chloro‐7‐nitrobenzofurazan (NBD‐Cl) in phosphate buffer of pH 9.0 to yield a highly fluorescent brown product. The optimum experimental conditions have been studied carefully. Linear calibration curves were obtained over the concentration range of 0.20 to 40 μg mL^?1 for BHA, and 0.80 to 50 μg mL^?1 for PG, using NBD‐Cl reagent. The detection limits were 18 ng mL^?1 for BHA, 55 ng mL^?1 for PG. Intra‐day and inter‐day relative standard deviations at 3 different concentrations were determined. The high recovery values indicate the accuracy of the proposed methods, and low relative standard deviation values indicate good precision. The results presented in this report show that the applied spectrofluorimetric method is acceptable for the determination of the 2 SPAs in the foodstuffs. Other SPAs, tertiary butyl hydroquinone and butylated hydroxytoluene in foodstuffs do not interfere with the proposed method. Practical Applications: In this spectrofluorimetric method, NBD‐Cl as a derivation agent is used to detect synthetic phenolic antioxidants. The method specificity has been greatly improved; there was no interference from other commonly used phenolic substances.     

Optimization of the method of the content‐containing interaction evaluation for cosmetic products by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry

In July 2013, the European Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 came into effect in order to secure cosmetic products. The content‐containing interaction between the packaging and the product must be considered for the safety assessment. Indeed, some compounds are able to migrate from the packaging to the product and may be harmful to the consumer health. This is why a first test was established by EXPERTOX laboratory in 2012 to deal with this new regulation. A new analytical method was developed and validated for the quantification of 23 substances able to migrate from the packaging to the product. It was applied on a plastic packaging with the five simulants of migration. To evaluate the content‐containing interaction, a gas chromatography‐mass spectrometry method was developed and validated. Liquid–liquid extraction was used to extract contaminants (thirteen phthalates and ten substances of very high concern) from migration simulants. Calibration curves showed good linearity regression from 2 to 50 μg mL^?1 for nineteen molecules and from 5 to 45 μg mL^?1 for the others. The limits of quantification were respectively 2 and 5 μg mL^?1. The accuracy, precision, repeatability of the analytical method and extraction yields were acceptable. No molecule was found in simulants of migration, so the potential contaminants present in the packaging did not migrate. A gas chromatography‐mass spectrometry method and liquid‐liquid extraction were validated for 23 molecules and can be used for the evaluation of the content‐containing interaction of cosmetic products. Both quantification and extraction procedures are more robust and faster than previous method.     

Effect of growing location,malaxation duration and citric acid treatment on the quality of olive oil

BACKGROUND: The total phenolic compounds of olive oil exert antiradical activity at cellular level and can prevent cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome and cancer. Increased awareness of its health benefits has increased the consumption of olive oil around the world. An alternative processing technique effective in increasing the amount of oil extracted while maintaining the oil quality is needed to meet the rising global demand for olive oil. RESULTS: Addition of 0.3 g mL^?1 citric acid at 1:1000 (v/w) to olive paste followed by a 30 min malaxation period significantly increased the oil recovery, concentration of total phenolic compounds and antiradical activity by 46.23, 120.27 and 31.48% respectively. While there was no significant effect on the acidity, the peroxide value was significantly reduced by 63.85%. The organoleptic characteristics of the olive oil extracted with citric acid were also comparable to those of the control. CONCLUSION: Addition of 0.3 g mL^?1 citric acid (i.e. 30% w/v) at 1:1000 (v/w) to olive paste followed by a 30 min malaxation period in a Blixer^® 4.0 blender is the most promising extraction technique to improve the oil recovery, concentration of total phenolic compounds and antiradical activity of the extracted olive oil without compromising other quality parameters. © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry