Abstract

GUZMAN-MALDONADO, Salvador Horacio; OSUNA-GARCIA, Jorge Alberto  and  HERRERA-GONZALEZ, Juan Antonio. Effect of locality and maturity on the fatty acid profile of avocado ‘Hass’ fruit. Rev. Mex. Cienc. Agríc [online]. 2017, vol.8, n.spe19, pp.3885-3896. ISSN 2007-0934.  https://doi.org/10.29312/remexca.v0i19.657.

In Mexico 77 000 t of avocado ‘Hass’ are harvested per year. Its omega fatty acid content makes it attractive due to its beneficial health effects, so it is important to know the quality of your oil. The harvested fruit in a green state in three localiti es, Nayarit, Michoacán and Jalisco. The three batches of fruit were divided into two groups; the former was lyophilized immediately, while the latter was allowed to mature to the point of consumption. The dry matter, the oil content and the fatty acid profile were determined. The green fruit presented the lowest range in the oil content (12.3 - 15.5%) compared to the mature fruit (12.7 - 17.8%). The mature Jalisco avocado showed higher oil content (17.8%) compared to Nayarit (12.7%) and Michoacán (17.3%). The content of saturated fatty acids was reduced to 28% by maturation, while oleic acid and linoleic acid increased by 20%. The planting location significantly affects the content of oleic acid; at lower altitudes the content of this acid is reduced up to 14%. The data suggest a possible origin designation for Mexican avocado.

Keywords : Persea americana Miller; dry matter; harvest; oil content.