MECHANISM AND KINETICS OF CAROTENOID DEGRADATION DURING THE PROCESSING OF GREEN TABLE OLIVES

The only carotenoids that were transformed during lactic fermentation in green table olives were those whose molecular structure made them s ensitive to the acid medium. The kinetic model that describes the tran sformation of these xanthophylls with 5,6-epoxide groups, violaxanthin and neoxanthin, into their corresponding 5,8-furanoid derivatives, au roxanthin and neochrome, fits first-order kinetics with respect to pig ment concentration. The constancy of the overall carotenoid content th roughout processing demonstrated the absence of other types of oxidati ve reactions that degrade them to colorless products.