Oxidative stability of edible argan oil: A two-year study

The present study investigated the oxidative stability of the threemarketed types of edible argan oil. Edible argan oil is prepared by pressing the slightly roasted kernels of peeled argan fruit. High quality edible argan oil is exclusively prepared using mechanical presses. However, hand-extracted argan oil is still artisanally produced and can be found in local markets. In this latter case, goat-peeled fruit is still sometimes introduced in the oil production chain even though the resulting oil is notoriously of unsatisfactory quality. The oxidative stability of press-extracted, hand-extracted, and goat-peeled fruit derived argan oil was analyzed using as physicochemical metrics: fatty acid composition, β-carotene level, phosphorus level, tocopherol level, iodine index, saponification, peroxide and acid values, specific extinction, and Rancimat induction time. The variations of these parameters were evaluated over a period of 2 years at 5 °C, 25 °C (protected or exposed to sunlight), or 40 °C. After this period of time, mechanically extracted argan oil still presents an excellent physicochemical profile. Domestic and traditionally prepared argan oil presents much less satisfactory properties after the same period.