The effect of natural antioxidants on long-term stability of sweet red pepper seed oil

Jasmina Ranilović¹*,Tanja Cvetković¹, Irena Vađunec Bajrić¹,Vesna Kadija-Cmrk¹, Tihomir Moslavac², Marina Ilakovac Kveder^3†,Dalibor Merunka³, Jurica Jurec³,Srećko Valić³,Stela Jokić²

¹Podravka Inc., Ante Starčevića 32, 48000 Koprivnica, Croatia
²Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Faculty of Food Technology Osijek, Franje Kuhača 18, 31000 Osijek, Croatia
³Institut Ruđer Bošković, Bijenička Cesta 54, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia

ARTICLE INFO	ABSTRACT
TYPE: Original scientific paper https://doi.org/10.17508/CJFST.2024.16.2.07 PDF	Oils obtained from fruit and vegetable by-products represent a new category of niche oils. Cold-pressed oil from the seeds of sweet peppers of the Podravka and Slavonka varieties is a new, high-quality oil from the vegetable niche oil category, naturally rich in polyunsaturated linoleic fatty acid, γ-tocopherol, and sterols as antioxidants that exhibit positive effects on human health in preventing chronic non-communicable diseases. However, for a broader commercial reach of this oil, preserving its quality over a longer period is of utmost importance. Based on monitoring four parametres (peroxide value, free fatty acids, antioxidative power, and radical potential), pure pepper seed oil did not have adequate quality by the end of the period of 9 month stored at room temperature due to oxidative changes. The addition of natural antioxidants such as green tea extract (0.2%), especially rosemary extract (0.2%) and a blend of rosemary extract (0.2%), and citric acid (0.01%) extended the stability of pure pepper seed oil to a period of one year. Since oxidation affects the organoleptic quality and nutritional composition of the oil, these results are encouraging for niche oil producers, not only because of the expansion of this category of edible oils made from secondary source raw materials (by-products), but also because of the evidence that their special quality will not be compromised within the declared shelf life due to oxidative spoilage.
*CORRESPONDENCE Jasmina Ranilović jasmina.ranilovic@podravka.hr
ARTICLE HISTORY Received: October 31, 2024 Accepted: November 25, 2024
CITATION Ranilović, J, Cvetković, T, Vađunec Bajrić, I, Kadija-Cmrk, V, Moslavac, T, Ilakovac Kveder, M, Merunka, D, Jurec, J, Valić, S, Jokić, S. The effect of natural antioxidants on long-term stability of sweet red pepper seed oil. Croatian Journal of Food Science and Technology (2024) 16 (2) 257 – 272
COPYRIGHT: © 2024 by the author(s). This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY).
	KEYWORDS sweet pepper seed oil; natural antioxidants; stability; niche oils
	KEY CONTRIBUTION Cold-pressed sweet pepper seed oil without added antioxidants is stable for approximately up to 9 months when stored in dark glass bottles and dark place at room temperature. The addition of a mixture of natural antioxidants, rosemary extract (0.2%) and citric acid (0.01%), to the pepper seed oil significantly slows down oxidative changes compared to the oil without additives, while the addition of high-oleic sunflower oil in a 1:1 ratio does not. The results can be useful for all producers of new oils from plant sources that are not typical oilseeds, and whose composition is rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids.