When we take our olives to the mill to get the extra-virgin olive oil, it is quite easy to notice that waste is produced: these are virgin pomace (solid) and vegetation water (liquid).
These wastes cannot be thrown away into the environment but must be disposed of properly, which has a high cost.
The pomace constitutes 30-50% by weight of the processed olives.
Traditionally, pomace has been disposed of through reuse as:
a. fertilizer spread directly on the soil
b. feed for animals (cattle and sheep)
c. fuel (solid as it is) or for the production of biogas
d. by-product to getpomace oil, with much poorer characteristics than extra-virgin oil. It is chemically extracted with solvent
In recent years, several studies have been conducted by Italian research bodies aimed at exploring the possibility of recovering functional molecules (polyphenols, tocopherols, phytosterols, terpenes, squalene) from the pomace.
Behind these complicated names there are molecules with high added value that find application in the food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical sectors.
This is what is being done within the project S.O.S. – Sustainability of the Olive oil System led by Ager and the participation of several Italian universities including the Department of Food Science and Technology of the University of Bari.
Ager, active in promoting scientific research in the Italian agri-food sector, has among its objectives the development of a "green" extraction method of the functional molecules contained in the pomace. In particular, the group is experimenting with the use of the so-called "supercritical CO2" to obtain extracts that can be used both in food and pharmaceutical fields. Alongside this extraction system, a method has also been developed to recover phenolic compounds from pomace for food enrichment and in the biomedical field using water and alcohol solutions and ultrasound. Find out more by clicking here ..
Even within the project V.A.L.E. (Enhancement of agro-food waste for the production of olive oil with increased nutritional value) led by the Salov group and with the participation, among others, of the Department of Agricultural, Food and Agro-Food Sciences of the University of Pisa and the CPTM consortium, it has been dealt with this topic.
Among the objectives declared by the promoters, in addition to the definition of refined olive oil products with additives with nutraceutical components, there is also the pilot-scale experimentation of production processes of nutraceutical components starting from waste from the production cycle of oil olive. Know the details on the website..
These researches open up new possibilities for us operators in the sector aimed at increase the efficiency of entire extra-virgin olive oil production chain..
