virgin olive oil
ingredient / ingredient-virgin-olive-oil
/ Olea europaea
On this page (4 sections)
Short definition
A virgin olive oil category for which extra-virgin classification has not necessarily been confirmed. Used in studies assessing the effects of irrigation, potassium fertilization, and frost damage.
A reader-facing overview for this entry is in preparation. What has been checked, and its sources, can be followed from the claim cards below.
Other names: VOO (en)
Hypotheses and recipe candidates for this entry are on the Japanese page.
Structured claims — open a section to read each claim's confidence, evidence and limits
Composition and content (1)
virgin olive oil — composition: Virgin olive oil (VOO) from olives exposed to light frost had significantly lower total phenol and secoiridoid compound concentrations and antioxidant capacity than VOO from undamaged fruit. In sensory evaluation, it developed the defect attribute 『frostbitten olives(凍傷オリーブ)』 (in translation: "frostbitten olives") and was rated more 『ピリ辛(pungent)』 (in translation: "pungent").supported
Scope: 'Arbequina' olives in Chile, with fruit studied over a 3-month harvest period around the time frost damage occurred.
VOO from frost-damaged fruit had lower total phenol and secoiridoid concentrations and antioxidant capacity, together with a 『frostbitten olives』 defect and increased pungency.
Source: The Management of Irrigation and Potassium Fertilization to Mitigate the Effect of Light Frosts on the Phenolic and Volatile Compounds in Virgin Olive Oils (Antonelli S; Pozas S; Saavedra-Torrico J; Donders M; Bustamante C; Sepúlveda B; Tapia F; García-González DL; Romero N, 2024) · full text checked
Show data
ingredient-virgin-olive-oil —has_composition→ "Virgin olive oil (VOO) from olives exposed to light frost had significantly lower total phenol and secoiridoid compound concentrations and antioxidant capacity than VOO from undamaged fruit. In sensory evaluation, it developed the defect attribute 『frostbitten olives(凍傷オリーブ)』 (in translation: "frostbitten olives") and was rated more 『ピリ辛(pungent)』 (in translation: "pungent")."claim: clm-olive-frost-reduces-phenols / type: composition / updated: 2026-09-02
Sensory (1)
virgin olive oil — perceived bitterness is affected by: 'Arbequina' cultivar olives, a Box-Behnken design (15 plots in total) combining 3 irrigation levels (75% ET0 = 5.202 m3/ha, 100% ET0 = 6.950 m3/ha, 125% ET0 = 8.718 m3/ha), 3 potassium fertilization levels (100, 175, and 250 UK2O kg/ha as K2O equivalent from potassium sulfate), and 3 foliar copper levels. For VOO from fresh fruit, the median sensory scores for fruitiness and bitterness were maximized at the combination of 75% ET0 irrigation and 250 UK2O potassium fertilization. For VOO from frost-damaged fruit, the median sensory scores for fruitiness and bitterness were maximized at the combination of 75% ET0 irrigation and 100 UK2O potassium fertilization. Pungency alone was maximized at the same irrigation level with 204 UK2O potassium application, so the three attributes were not all maximized together at the same combination. In the partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), the levels of 75-100% ET0 irrigation combined with zero potassium fertilization correlated positively with the fruitiness, pungency, and bitterness attributes, and with specific secoiridoid degradation products.supported
Scope: 'Arbequina' cultivar olives, Chile, a trial across fruit ripening stages over a 3-month harvest period
Note: Sensory evaluation was performed by a trained panel of 9 members, following the IOC-approved COI-T20-Doc.-15 method. Note that the estimated optimal conditions are predictions from a response-surface model based on the Box-Behnken design, not values that the panel actually measured independently for each combination.
For fresh fruit, sensory scores including bitterness were maximized at 75% ET0 irrigation + 250 UK2O potassium fertilization; for frost-damaged fruit, at 75% ET0 irrigation + 100 UK2O potassium fertilization. PLS-DA showed a positive correlation between 75-100% ET0 irrigation with zero potassium fertilization and bitterness and the other attributes.
Limitations: The estimated optimal conditions are predicted values from the Box-Behnken response-surface model; the combinations themselves were not independently regrown and measured. Single cultivar, single origin, single year.
Source: The Management of Irrigation and Potassium Fertilization to Mitigate the Effect of Light Frosts on the Phenolic and Volatile Compounds in Virgin Olive Oils (Antonelli S; Pozas S; Saavedra-Torrico J; Donders M; Bustamante C; Sepúlveda B; Tapia F; García-González DL; Romero N, 2024) · full text checked
Show data
ingredient-virgin-olive-oil —has_perceived_bitterness_affected_by→ "'Arbequina' cultivar olives, a Box-Behnken design (15 plots in total) combining 3 irrigation levels (75% ET0 = 5.202 m3/ha, 100% ET0 = 6.950 m3/ha, 125% ET0 = 8.718 m3/ha), 3 potassium fertilization levels (100, 175, and 250 UK2O kg/ha as K2O equivalent from potassium sulfate), and 3 foliar copper levels. For VOO from fresh fruit, the median sensory scores for fruitiness and bitterness were maximized at the combination of 75% ET0 irrigation and 250 UK2O potassium fertilization. For VOO from frost-damaged fruit, the median sensory scores for fruitiness and bitterness were maximized at the combination of 75% ET0 irrigation and 100 UK2O potassium fertilization. Pungency alone was maximized at the same irrigation level with 204 UK2O potassium application, so the three attributes were not all maximized together at the same combination. In the partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), the levels of 75-100% ET0 irrigation combined with zero potassium fertilization correlated positively with the fruitiness, pungency, and bitterness attributes, and with specific secoiridoid degradation products."claim: clm-arbequina-voo-irrigation-potassium-bitterness / type: sensory / updated: 2026-09-02