Physicochemical Properties of Edible Oils in Sri Lankan Market

The consumption of edible oils in Sri Lanka coupled with quality and potential health risk by highlighting the need for systematic evaluation. Olive Oil (OO), Sunflower Oil (SO), Palm Oil (PO), Virgin Coconut Oil (VCO), White Coconut Oil (WCO), and Soy Oil (SoO) are six different types of fast-moving edible oils in the Sri Lankan market. This study was intended to evaluate the parameters of physicochemical including free fatty acid (FFA), peroxide value (PV), color, viscosity and the specific gravity of aforesaid oils including 20 randomly selected oil brands (three brands OO, three brands SO, four brands PO, five brands VCO, three brands WCO, and two brands SoO) at the time of purchasing from the market. For OO, PV ranged from 4.47±0.13 meq/kg to 7.47±0.05 meq/kg, and FFA from 0.38±0.03% to 0.52±0.06%. All the brands met the Sri Lankan Standard (SLS)for peroxide value (PV) and the free fatty acid (F(FA). SO showed PV values between 7.67±4.43 to 14.80±8.54 meq/kg, and FFA between 0.46±0.07% and 0.86±0.18%, with some brands failing to meet the SLS standard. PO samples ranged from 8.47±0.27 to 11.13±1.43 meq/kg for PV and 0.25±0.03% to 0.36±0.07% for FFA, with mixed compliance to SLS limits. VCO showed PV from 2.27±0.13 to 4.20±0.31 meq/kg and FFA from 0.20±0.06% to 0.32±0.03%, while some brands failing to meet the SL standard. WCO and SoO brands had significant variations, especially in FFA. In conclusion, olive oil (OO) demonstrated superior quality compared to other edible oils evaluated in this study, as the other oil types showed considerable variation within each category and deviated from SL standards.