Rapid Extraction of Lycopene and β‐Carotene from Reconstituted Tomato Paste and Pink Grapefruit Homogenates

ABSTRACT Samples were extracted in Erlenmeyer flasks with hexane‐ethanol‐acetone (50:25:25). After extraction, 15 mL of water were added to separate the solution into polar and nonpolar layers. Lycopene was concentrated in the upper nonpolar phase while other components and polar pigments were contained in the lower polar phase. The lycopene phase was analyzed using isocratic HPLC with a C‐18 column and methanol‐THF‐water (67:27:6) mobile phase. Lycopene and (β‐caro‐tene eluted as chromatographically pure peaks.