Variability of fatty acid composition in olive (Olea europaea L.) progenies

Seedlings from crosses between the olive cultivars "Arbequina", "Frantoio" and "Picual" were evaluated for fatty acid composition over two consecutive years. Gas chromatography was used for analyzing the main fatty acids of olive oil: palmitic (C16:0), palmitoleic (C16:1), stearic (C18:0), oleic (C18:1) and linoleic (C18:2). Wide ranges of variation were obtained for all the fatty acids; as large or even larger than the ranges reported from the evaluation of olive cultivar collections. Significant differences were found between crosses for all the fatty acids analysed except for palmitic acid and between years for all of them except stearic acid, being the interaction crosses x year non significant for any of them. The wide variability observed for all the fatty acids represents a very promising base to obtain new olive cultivars with high oil quality, as vegetative propagation allows the conservation of the most interesting plants.