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THE PHILIPPINE
Comparative Physicochemical
AGRICULTURAL
Characteristics
SCIENTIST
of Virgin Coconut Oil Vermont
ISSN 0031-7454
P. Dia et al.
Vol. 88 No. 4, 462 - 475
December 2005

Comparative Physicochemical Characteristics of Virgin Coconut Oil

Produced by Different Methods
Vermont P. Dia1*, Virgilio V. Garcia1, Reynaldo C. Mabesa1 and Evelyn Mae Tecson-Mendoza2

Portion of M. S. thesis of the senior author; funded by the Commission on Higher Education.

1Food Science Cluster, College of Agriculture, University of the Philippines Los Baños, College, Laguna, 4031, Philippines

2Instituteof Plant Breeding, College of Agriculture, University of the Philippines Los Baños, College, Laguna 4031,
Philippines

* Author for correspondence; e-mail: vermont_dia@yahoo.com

Virgin coconut oil (VCO) was produced using three methods termed desiccated coconut meat-40 C
incubation method, coconut milk-40 C incubation method and coconut milk-freeze-and-thaw method
during which the highest temperature attained was 47 C for the first method. Two varieties and one
hybrid of coconut were used to obtain VCO using the first two methods while coconuts of unknown
variety were used for the third method. Six commercial VCO products and one refined, bleached and
deodorized coconut oil (RBDCO) sample were included for comparison.
All VCO samples had water clear transparent physical appearance and coconut-like aroma and
taste. The melting point of laboratory-produced VCO samples ranged from 24.5 to 25.5 C, which is
similar to the melting point of RBDCO. Their specific gravity ranged from 0.9176 to 0.9192. The saponi-
fication number of the laboratory-produced VCOs ranged from 264 to 274 mg KOH g-1 while the iodine
values were from 4.35 to 6.85 g I2 100 g-1. The free fatty acid (FFA) ranged from 0.09% to 0.18% lauric acid
while the peroxide value (POV) ranged from 0.24 to 0.50 meq peroxide kg-1. The moisture content
ranged from 0.06% to 0.12%. For commercial sample VCOs, the range of values of the said properties
were 24.0 to 25.7 C, 0.9169 to 0.9193, 266 to 272 mg KOH g-1, 4.86 to 7.61 g I2 100 g-1, 0.06 to 0.32% lauric
acid, 0.48 to 2.07 meq peroxide kg-1 and 0.10% to 0.42%, respectively. The fatty acid composition
showed slight variation among oil samples and the lauric acid content ranged from 47.63% to 52.55%.
α-Tocopherol was not detected in the VCO samples by HPLC analysis. The total phenolic content of the
laboratory-produced VCOs ranged from 22.88 to 91.90 mg catechin equivalent kg-1 oil while that of the
commercial VCOs was 35.26 to 49.07 mg catechin kg-1 oil. The antioxidant activity of the VCO samples
ranged from 47.4% to 78% relative peroxidation compared with 46% obtained using 200 mg á-toco-
pherol. The crude protein for laboratory-produced VCOs was 0.06% to 0.11% compared to 0.07% to
0.12% for the commercial VCOs. The study showed that the VCOs produced by the three methods or
using different varieties exhibited differences in chemical and quality properties but these may not be
large enough to affect the overall quality of the VCOs. Further, the levels of such properties were still
within the CODEX and proposed Philippine standards for coconut oil and for VCO, respectively, prob-
ably due to the relatively mild process (with temperature not exceeding 47 C) used in the study.

Key words: cold processing, desiccated coconut route, incubation at 40 C, physicochemical characteristics,
virgin coconut oil

Abbreviations: FAME – fatty acid methyl ester, FFA – free fatty acid, MC – moisture content, POV – peroxide
value, RBDCO – refined, bleached and deodorized coconut oil, VCO – virgin coconut oil

462 The Philippine Agricultural Scientist Vol. 88 No. 4 (December 2005)

Comparative Physicochemical Characteristics of Virgin Coconut Oil
INTRODUCTION
Although constituting only 10% of the total biomass
of the coconut, coconut oil has been the most impor-
tant item of commerce from the coconut tree (Padolina
et al. 1987). The common color of coconut oil is yel-
low, which is due to the current oil milling process
based on copra as raw material and not fresh coconut
meat. Furthermore, coconut oil undergoes a refining
process, which is needed to eliminate undesirable com-
pounds present in crude coconut oil such as polar lip-
ids, free fatty acids, waxes, pigments, some odor- and
taste-imparting substances, sulfur-containing com-
pounds, trace metal ions, contaminants and autoxida-
tion products as a result of drying coconut meat into
copra (Belitz and Grosch 1999).
On the other hand, coconut oil extracted from
fresh coconut meat is water clear with a distinct co-
conut flavor and aroma and does not have any rancid
smell even without undergoing the refining process.
This form of coconut oil is known as virgin coconut oil
(VCO). It is obtained from the fresh and mature ker-
nel (or solid endosperm or meat) of coconut by me-
chanical or natural means with or without application
of heat. Cold pressed oils are food oils that have been
extracted from seed or grain without the use of high
temperature or solvents (CODEX 2003). There is no
refining process following the extraction. True cold
processing is legally defined as oil extraction at tem-
peratures below 50 C and applies only to fully unre-
fined oils.
VCO has become popular locally and as an ex-
port product because of its reported health benefits.
According to the report of the Philippine Coconut Au-
thority, the exports of VCO increased tremendously
from 1.8 MT in 2001 to 120 MT in 2004 (PCA 2004).
To protect the quality and safety of the VCO product,
the Philippine National Standards-Bureau of Agricul-
tural and Fisheries Product Standards (PNS-BAFPS)
approved a set of standards for VCOs in 2004 (BPS-
DTI 2004).
Coconut oil and palm kernel oil are the only two
oils that are made up predominantly of medium chain
triglycerides. The saturated medium chain fatty acids
in coconut oil comprise two-thirds of coconut oil’s fatty
acids; the saturated long chain fatty acids are less
than one-third and the unsaturated fatty acids are less
The Philippine Agricultural Scientist Vol. 88 No. 4 (December 2005)
Vermont P. Dia et al.
than a tenth of its fatty acids. Therefore, coconut oil
is about 90% saturated fatty acids (Padolina et al.
1987). Compared to fats (tallow, lard and butter), co-
conut oil contains the highest percentage of medium
chain fatty acids.
The medium chain triglycerides differ from the
long chain triglycerides found in animal and dairy fats
in their metabolism in the human body. The fatty ac-
ids of twelve carbons or less do not require carnithine
to enter mitochondria (Blackburn 1989). Because of
their rapid utilization as energy, the shorter chain fatty
acids do not provide a large substrate pool for very
low-density lipoproteins incorporation by the liver
(Bach and Babayan 1982). The medium chain trig-
lycerides are rapidly absorbed in the intestines, even
without pancreatic lipase; they are carried by portal
vein to the liver where they are rapidly oxidized to
energy (Dayrit 2003). As such, medium chain triglyc-
erides, unlike long chain triglycerides, do not enter the
cholesterol cycle, are not deposited in fat depots and
do not cause obesity. Bach and Babayan (1982) sug-
gested the use of medium chain triglycerides in the
treatment of weight reduction of humans. Mascioli
(1989) said that the ingestion of a meal containing
medium chain triglycerides results in a higher resting
metabolism for the individual, indicating a greater con-
sumption of energy in calories, thus preventing the
deposition of fats.
A recent study by Nevin and Rajamohan (2004)
compared the beneficial effect of virgin coconut oil to
copra oil using rat feeding tests. They reported that
the VCO obtained by wet process lowered the lipid
components of rats’ serum, liver, heart and kidney
compared to copra oil. They also reported VCO’s
prevention of low-density lipoproteins oxidation by
physiological antioxidants.
We hereby report results of our study which aimed
at characterizing the VCO produced by using three
different methods representative of those commonly
used by commercial producers under defined labora-
tory conditions, in terms of physical, chemical and
quality properties. The study further compared the
laboratory-produced VCO products with commercial
VCO and refined, bleached and deodorized coconut
oil (RBDCO) products. It also determined the pos-
sible effects of coconut variety on the characteristics
of VCO produced by two methods.
463
Comparative Physicochemical Characteristics of Virgin Coconut Oil
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Materials
Coconuts from two varieties of coconut, namely, La-
guna tall (LT) and Catigan green dwarf (CGD), and
their hybrid were obtained from the Philippine Coco-
nut Authority, Zamboanga Research Center,
Zamboanga City. These coconuts were used to pro-
duce VCO by the desiccated coconut meat-40 C in-
cubation dry method and the coconut milk-40 C incu-
bation wet method described below. The nuts used
were mature (from 11 to 13 mo old after pollination).
The coconuts were taken at random from 25 trees
and were carefully chosen so that spoiled nuts would
not be included in the preparation of VCO. Spoiled
nuts were differentiated from sound and mature nuts
by a softening that occurs in the eye of the kernel and
by foul odor (Banzon et al. 1990). Samples of coco-
nuts for the coconut milk-freeze-and-thaw cold pro-
cessing method were obtained from a local market in
Los Baños, Laguna. Six commercial VCO and
RBDCO products were obtained from different manu-
facturers. The commercial samples were packaged
in PET bottles; in some of the samples, the fatty acid
composition of the oil had been printed on the labels.
Manufacturing date was not printed on the label of
the commercial samples.
All the chemicals used were of analytical grade.
Production of Virgin Coconut Oil
Three processing methods representative of methods
commonly used by commercial VCO producers were
used to produce VCO in the laboratory. For all pro-
cesses, the coconut was deshelled and pared using
the coconut processing equipment available at the pi-
lot plant of the Institute of Food Science and Technol-
ogy, College of Agriculture, University of the Philip-
pines Los Baños. The coconut meat was carefully
removed from the shell so that no part of the testa
was included in the sample. The coconut meat was
soaked in a 1% sodium metabisulfite solution for about
1 h to prevent browning (Fennema 1996) and ground
to pass a 10-mesh sieve. The stainless steel and elec-
tric-operated coconut meat grinder and coconut oil
extractor were fabricated by the Prinsena Machine
Shop in San Pablo, Laguna.
464 The Philippine Agricultural Scientist Vol. 88 No. 4 (December 2005)
Vermont P. Dia et al.
The dry method involved the following steps: The
ground coconut meat was dried at 40 C using a cabi-
net dryer for 24 h. The dried coconut meat was stored
inside a freezer for 1 wk before use and the coconut
oil was extracted from the dried meat using a coconut
oil extractor. The maximum temperature of the oil as
it got out of the expeller was measured to be 47.0 C.
The extracted oil was centrifuged at 8000 x g. The
water clear virgin oil was collected by decantation.
This method is termed as “desiccated coconut meat-
40 C incubation method.”
For the first wet method, coconut milk was first
extracted from freshly ground meat. Coconut milk was
incubated for 24 h in a 40 C water bath to hasten
separation of the cream from the skim milk following
the procedure described by Del Rosario and Mabesa
(1976), Del Rosario (1979) and Banzon and Velasco
(1982). The oil layer that separated was further cen-
trifuged at 8000 x g for 15 min to separate water clear
virgin coconut oil from the non-oil components. This
method is termed “coconut milk-40 C incubation
method.”
For the second wet method, the coconut milk was
extracted as before and subjected to approximately 4
cycles of freeze and thaw to obtain the oil from the
coconut milk. The freeze and thaw method involved
refrigeration of coconut milk at 4 C for 4 h and allow-
ing the frozen coconut milk to thaw at ambient tem-
perature for 2 h. The oil that separated was scooped
using a spoon and was centrifuged at 8000 x g to
further remove suspended particles. This method is
termed “coconut milk-freeze-and thaw method.”
Physicochemical Analysis
The melting point, specific gravity, saponification num-
ber and iodine value of the laboratory produced and
commercial VCO and RBDCO were determined fol-
lowing standard procedures (AOAC 2000). All analy-
ses were done in triplicate.
Quality Characteristics
The moisture content, free fatty acid number and per-
oxide value of VCO and RBDCO were determined
following standard procedures (AOAC 2000). All
analyses were done in triplicate.
Comparative Physicochemical Characteristics of Virgin Coconut Oil
Fatty Acid Composition
The fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) of the oil were
produced by weighing 30 mg of oil in screw cap tubes
to which 4 mL of methanolic HCl was added and mixed
(AOAC 2000). The mixture was incubated at 50 C
for 10 h and cooled to room temperature. The FAME
was extracted using hexane three times. The hexane
extracts were combined and passed through anhy-
drous Na2SO4 for drying.
Two mL of the FAME extract was injected into a
Hewlett-Packard 5890A gas chromatograph equipped
with flame ionization detector and a Hewlett-Packard
Model 3396 integrator. Separation was done on an
80/100 Chromosorb-WAW column containing 10%
DEGS (3.0 mm id x 216 mm). Elution of FAME was
carried out with temperature increases programmed
from 90 to 200 C at a ramp rate of 10 C min-1, and
nitrogen at a flow rate of 20 mL min-1. The FAME
was identified and quantified through comparison with
FAME standards, Sigma S 189-2 and Sigma S 198-3
(Sigma Chemicals, Missouri, USA).
Analysis of α -Tocopherol
α-Tocopherol was analyzed (AOAC 2000) by saponi-
fying the oil in the presence of ascorbic acid under
nitrogen gas for 15 min. The saponified mixture was
cooled and the a-tocopherol was extracted using pe-
troleum ether three times. The petroleum ether ex-
tract was dried by passing through anhydrous Na2SO4.
Three hundred IU of commercially available vitamin
E was added to the oil sample as an internal standard.
Twenty µL of petroleum ether extract was injected in
Shimadzu 1982 Model SPD GAV HPLC equipped
with Shimadzu 1982 Model LC 9A detector and
Shimadzu 1982 GR6A integrator under the following
conditions: l of 290 nm, methanol as mobile phase, 0.5
mL min-1 flow rate and ODS Column (Zorbax).
Total Phenolic Content
The total phenolic content of the oil samples was de-
termined according to the procedure of Folin and
Ciocalteu (1927) with some modifications by Luximon-
Ramma et al. (2002) using catechin as standard. The
total phenolic content of olive oil, grape wine and co-
conut meat was also determined for comparison.
Antioxidant Assay
The assay for antioxidant activity was carried out us-
ing the linoleic acid system (Osawa and Namiki 1981).
The Philippine Agricultural Scientist Vol. 88 No. 4 (December 2005)
Vermont P. Dia et al.
Each sample (200 µL) was added to a 10 mL solution
mixture as follows: 9.8 mL phosphate buffer with li-
noleic acid (prepared by mixing 25 mL 100 mM, pH
7.4 phosphate buffer + 3.5 g SDS + 0.35 mL linoleic
acid + 450 mL water) and 50 mL freshly prepared
H2O2 (1.17 mL 30% hydrogen peroxide per mL wa-
ter) and 50 mL of 20 mM FeCl2. The solution was
incubated at 37 C for 2 to 4 h and the degree of oxida-
tion was measured according to the thiocyanate
method (Mitsuda et al. 1966) for measuring perox-
ides by taking the absorbance at 500 nm after color
development with FeCl2 and ammonium thiocyanate.
A test solution with hydrogen peroxide-FeCl2 but with-
out any sample was taken as the control (100% rela-
tive lipid peroxidation) while that without hydrogen
peroxide–FeCl2 and sample was taken as blank. Bu-
tylated hydroxyanisole, butylated hydroxytoluene and
vitamin E were used as positive control at 200 mg.
Crude Protein Content
The crude protein content of the samples were deter-
mined by Kjeldahl method following standard proce-
dures (AOAC 2000).
Statistical Analysis
The data were analyzed for significant difference us-
ing analysis of variance. The difference among
samples was analyzed using Duncan’s Multiple Range
Test.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Yield
The yield of VCO from the three processing methods
did not differ significantly from one another (Table 1).
Following the desiccated coconut meat-40 C incuba-
tion method, the yields were 23.33% for the LT vari-
ety, 21.28% for CGD variety and 22.97% for the hy-
brid of LT and CGD (or LT x CGD). For the coconut
milk-40 C incubation method, the yields were 23.14%
for LT, 21.43% for CGD and 22.03% for LT x CGD.
The coconut milk-freeze-and-thaw method exhibited
the lowest yield of 20.54%. These yields, based on
the weight of fresh coconut meat, are low when com-
pared to the copra method, which can produce coco-
nut oil from 30% to 35% based on the weight of ma-
ture coconut meat (Harries 1994).
465
Comparative Physicochemical Characteristics of Virgin Coconut Oil Vermont P. Dia et al.

Table 1. Yield of virgin coconut oil (VCO) using three Table 2. Physical characteristics of different virgin co-
different production methods. conut oil (VCO) and refined, bleached and deodorized
coconut oil (RBDCO) samples.
Method Yield ( %)1
Sample1 Melting Point Specific Gravity
Desiccated coconut meat-40 C incubation method (C) (25 C/25 C)
Laguna Tall (LT) 23.33
Catigan Green Dwarf (CGD) 21.28 RBDCO 25.0-25.5 0.9188
LT x CGD 22.97 CS 1 25.0-25.7 0.9176
CS 2 24.0-25.5 0.9192
Coconut milk-40 C incubation method CS 3 24.0-25.5 0.9184
Laguna Tall 23.14 CS 4 25.0-25.5 0.9177
Catigan Green Dwarf 21.43 CS 5 25.0-25.5 0.9187
LT x CGD 22.03 CS 6 25.0-25.5 0.9185
CPVCO 24.5-25.2 0.9193
Coconut milk-freeze-and-thaw method 20.54 LTVCO-W 24.5-25.5 0.9185
CGDVCO-W 24.7-25.2 0.9182
1Yields are expressed on a fresh weight basis. LCVCO-W 24.5-25.5 0.9171
LTVCO-D 24.5-25.2 0.9185
CGDVCO-D 25.0-25.5 0.9169
Physicochemical Characteristics LCVCO-D 25.0-25.5 0.9175
The VCO samples produced in the laboratory and 1 CS - commercial sample of virgin coconut oil
those obtained from commercial sources were water CPVCO – cold processed virgin coconut oil
clear with a distinct coconut aroma and taste. LTVCO-W – wet processed from Laguna Tall variety
Physical characteristics. The specific gravity of CGDVCO-W – wet processed from Catigan Green Dwarf variety
LCVCO-W – wet processed from the hybrid of Laguna Tall and
the laboratory-produced samples ranged from 0.9169 Catigan Green Dwarf
for wet processed VCO from Catigan Green Dwarf LTVCO-D – dry processed from Laguna Tall variety
variety (CGDVCO-W) to 0.9193 for cold processed CGDVCO-D – dry processed from Catigan Green Dwarf variety
VCO (CPVCO) while that of the commercial samples LCVCO-D – dry processed from the hybrid of Laguna Tall and Catigan
Green Dwarf
ranged from 0.9176 to 0.9187 (Table 2). These were RBDCO – refined, bleached and deodorized coconut oil
not significantly different among each other and from
the specific gravity of the RBDCO sample of 0.9188.
The values obtained in the analysis are within the 1996). The melting point of VCO samples showed
CODEX (2003) standard for RBDCO, which is 0.908 that this oil was mainly composed of saturated fatty
to 0.921 and also the proposed standard for VCO by acids. The above results showed that the physical
BPS DTI (2004). Specific gravity determination is characteristics of specific gravity and melting point
important since it is greatly affected by age, rancidity, were not affected by the process of VCO production
presence of impurities and any special treatment of or by the variety of coconut used.
the oil (Madamba and Flavier 2000). Chemical characteristics. The saponification
The melting point of the laboratory-produced and number of the laboratory-produced and commercial
commercial VCO samples ranged from 24.0 to 25.7 VCO and RBDCO samples ranged from 263.65 to
C. These values were very close to the melting point 274.04 mg KOH g-1 oil (Table 3). Saponification num-
of RBDCO, which is 24.5 to 25.5 C and were found ber is a measure of the mean molecular weight of the
to be not significantly different among each other. oil. The saponification number of the VCO samples
These values are within the range of the CODEX indicated that the triacylglycerols of the oil samples
(2003) and BPS-DTI (2004) standard for the melting were primarily composed of short to medium chain
point of RBDCO and VCO, respectively, of 24 to 26 fatty acids. The calculated mean molecular weight of
C. The melting point of fats and oils is basically deter- a single fatty acid in the triacylglycerol was 204 to
mined by the melting points of their constituent fatty 212 g mol-1. The values obtained were higher by 9 to
acids. It increases with increasing length of carbon 15 units than the CODEX standard of 248 to 265 mg
chain of the corresponding saturated fatty acids but KOH g-1 oil. On the other hand, the results were in
decreases with increasing unsaturation (Fennema agreement with the international standard for coco-

466 The Philippine Agricultural Scientist Vol. 88 No. 4 (December 2005)

Comparative Physicochemical Characteristics of Virgin Coconut Oil Vermont P. Dia et al.

Table 3. Chemical characteristics of different virgin co- variety (LCVCO-D). This may be due to the varietal
conut oil (VCO) and refined, bleached and deodorized differences in the content of unsaturated fatty acids
coconut oil (RBDCO) samples.
in the varieties of coconut used (Laureles et al. 2002).
Sample Saponification No.1 Iodine Value1 Both wet methods also produced VCOs with lower
iodine values than the samples produced by the dry
RBDCO 263a 6.68b method. CS1 had the highest value of 7.61.
CS 1 272a 7.61a These results show that both the processing type
CS 2 271a 4.86d and variety affect the iodine value of the VCO. The
CS 3 272a 6.51b
CS 4 266a 6.02bc
values obtained are very close to the standard set by
CS 5 270a 6.01bc CODEX for RBDCO (6 to 10 g I2 100 g-1 oil) and the
CS 6 270a 6.91ab proposed standard for VCO by BAFPS-PNS (5 to 11
CPVCO 274a 5.53cd g I2 100 g-1 oil).
LTVCO-W 274a 5.30cd
CGDVCO-W 265a 4.87d
Quality Characteristics
LCVCO-W 264a 4.35e
LTVCO-D 271a 6.85ab The quality of fats and oils is usually determined by
CGDVCO-D 271a 6.47b the extent of rancidity they have undergone. Expo-
LCVCO-D 274a 5.87cd sure to air and use in cooking of RBDCO will result in
1
very high rancidity (Fennema 1996). Rancidity in oils
In a column, means followed by the same letter are not signifi-
cantly different from each other, p= 0.05.
is measured by free fatty acid (FFA) and peroxide
CS - commercial sample of virgin coconut oil value (POV). FFA measures the extent of hydrolytic
CPVCO – cold processed virgin coconut oil rancidity while POV measures the extent of oxida-
LTVCO-W – wet processed from Laguna Tall variety tive rancidity.
CGDVCO-W – wet processed from Catigan Green Dwarf variety
LCVCO-W – wet processed from the hybrid of Laguna Tall and Analysis of the FFA of the commercial and labo-
Catigan Green Dwarf ratory-produced VCO samples showed that CS 3 had
LTVCO-D – dry processed from Laguna Tall variety the highest free lauric acid of 0.32%. Among the labo-
CGDVCO-D – dry processed from Catigan Green Dwarf variety
LCVCO-D – dry processed from the hybrid of Laguna Tall and
ratory-produced VCOs, those produced using the co-
Catigan Green Dwarf conut milk-40 C incubation wet method had the low-
RBDCO – refined, bleached and deodorized coconut oil. est FFA of 0.09% lauric acid (Table 4). The sample
obtained using the coconut milk-40 C incubation wet
method also had a low FFA of 0.12%. Among the
nut oil (255 mg KOH g-1 oil minimum) as proposed by samples obtained by the desiccated coconut-40 C in-
the Asian and Pacific Coconut Community (Thampan cubation dry method, the LTVCO-D had the highest
1984). FFA of 0.18% while the dry processed VCO from
The iodine value is the amount of iodine absorbed Catigan Green Dwarf variety (CGDVCO-D) and
by 100 g of oil and is an indicator of the degree of LCVCO-D had similar values of 0.11% and 0.15%,
unsaturation of fatty acids in the oil. The iodine respectively. The high 0.32% FFA of CS 3 exceeded
values of the VCO samples ranged from 4.35 g I2 100 the standard level of 0.2% set by BAFPS-PNS.
g-1 oil to 7.61 g I2 100 g-1 (Table 3) and indicate that Except for LTVCO-D, the other samples derived
the oil contained very small amount of unsaturated from the dry and wet methods and the freeze-and-
fatty acids. For iodine values, significant differences thaw method had statistically similar FFA values. It
among some of the VCO samples and among the should be noted that both dry and wet methods uti-
varieties used were observed: Wet processed VCO lized 40 C incubation while the freeze-and-thaw
from Laguna Tall variety (LTVCO-W) and dry pro- method involved thawing at ambient room tempera-
cessed VCO from Laguna Tall variety (LTVCO-D) ture of about 30 to 32 C. The highest temperature
had significantly higher iodine values of 5.30 and 6.85 was attained in the desiccated coconut meat-40 C in-
than the hybrid samples of wet processed VCO from cubation method during which the temperature rose
the hybrid of Laguna Tall and Catigan Green Dwarf to 47 C when the oil was being expelled. Even the
variety (LCVCO-W) and dry processed VCO from highest FFA value of 0.18% obtained for LTVCO-D
the hybrid of Laguna Tall and Catigan Green Dwarf is still within the CODEX standard for FFA. Thus, the

The Philippine Agricultural Scientist Vol. 88 No. 4 (December 2005) 467

Comparative Physicochemical Characteristics of Virgin Coconut Oil Vermont P. Dia et al.

Table 4. Quality characteristics of different virgin coco- Moisture content (MC) is another parameter that
nut oil (VCO) and refined, bleached and deodorized will determine the quality of the VCO samples. The
coconut oil (RBDCO) samples.
MC of the commercial VCOs ranged from 0.10% to
Sample Free Fatty Peroxide % 0.42% with CS 1 and CS 3 having the highest MC of
Acid1 Value1 MC1 0.42% and 0.33%, respectively (Table 4), higher than
the standards set by BAFPS-PNS for moisture con-
RBDCO 0.02e 0.00d 0.00d tent of 0.2%.
CS 1 0.18b 2.07a 0.42a On the other hand, the laboratory-produced
CS 2 0.06d 1.00b 0.14c
CS 3 0.32a 1.01b 0.33b
samples had 0.06% to 0.12% MC. The use of differ-
CS 4 0.12c 1.00b 0.10c ent methods of preparing VCOs did not result in sig-
CS 5 0.14c 0.48c 0.12c nificant differences in moisture content. This may be
CS 6 0.10c 0.95b 0.12c explained by the more efficient and effective separa-
CPVCO 0.12c 0.24d 0.10c tion of the oil from non-oil constituents for the labora-
LTVCO-W 0.09cd 0.50c 0.06c
tory-produced samples. The higher levels of MC in
CGDVCO-W 0.09cd 0.49c 0.10c
LCVCO-W 0.09cd 0.49c 0.08c the commercial samples may be due to the less effi-
LTVCO-D 0.18b 0.48c 0.12c cient oil purification. It is also possible that the samples
CGDVCO-D 0.11c 0.49c 0.10c with higher MC content had been stored for a longer
LCVCO-D 0.15c 0.49c 0.09c period than the others. Thus, for commercial large-
1 In a column, means followed by the same letter are not signifi-
scale processing, strict quality control has to be un-
cantly different from each other, p= 0.05. dertaken to ensure very low levels of moisture in the
CS - commercial sample of virgin coconut oil product. The high FFA of CS 1 and CS 3 may also be
CPVCO – cold processed virgin coconut oil explained by their high MC. In oils, moisture is one of
LTVCO-W – wet processed from Laguna Tall variety
CGDVCO-W – wet processed from Catigan Green Dwarf variety
the reactants in fat hydrolysis, which can lead to the
LCVCO-W – wet processed from the hybrid of Laguna Tall and liberation of free fatty acids. Production of free fatty
Catigan Green Dwarf acids causes hydrolytic rancidity. Moisture is one of
LTVCO-D – dry processed from Laguna Tall variety
CGDVCO-D – dry processed from Catigan Green Dwarf variety
the most important parameters for oil quality because,
LCVCO-D – dry processed from the hybrid of Laguna Tall and Catigan together with FFA, it can cause oxidation in the pres-
Green Dwarf ence of light (Che Man et al. 1992). These results
RBDCO – refined, bleached and deodorized coconut oil. indicate that VCO with low moisture content has
higher quality and stability than VCO with high mois-
ture content.
use of 40 C temperature in the production of VCO The peroxide value and free fatty acid number of
can be considered as a mild process. RBDCO of 0% and 0.02%, respectively, were lower
Peroxide value measurement showed a wide range than the values for any of the VCOs. The moisture
of POV of the oil samples from 0.24 to 2.07 meq content of RBDCO was zero percent. The low FFA
peroxide kg -1 oil (Table 4). The commercial samples and zero POV values of RBDCO can be explained
exhibited the higher POVs of 0.48 to 2.07 while the by the refining process RBDCO has undergone which
laboratory- produced products only had 0.24 to 0.50 removes all undesirable and non-fat compounds in the
POV. Cold processed VCO (CPVCO) had the low- crude oil.
est peroxide value of 0.24 meq peroxide kg-1 oil prob- These results show that the free fatty acid con-
ably because among the laboratory-produced samples, tent of the VCO samples is not affected by the pro-
CPVCO did not undergo any heating step. Heating cess used in the production of VCO since the use of
accelerates oxidation of oxidizable materials that can 30 to 40 C in the production gives FFA values which
lead to high peroxide value. The higher POVs of the are not statistically different values for 6 laboratory-
commercial samples may be due to their longer stor- produced VCOs. On the other hand, peroxide values
age compared with the laboratory-produced samples, of the VCO are affected by the temperature used in
which were relatively freshly made. However, these the process. The use of heat tends to produce an in-
values are still within the limit set by BAFPS-PNS, creased peroxide value as demonstrated by the rela-
which is 3 meq peroxide kg-1 oil maximum. tively lower POV of CPVCO than other laboratory-

468 The Philippine Agricultural Scientist Vol. 88 No. 4 (December 2005)

Comparative Physicochemical Characteristics of Virgin Coconut Oil Vermont P. Dia et al.

produced VCO samples. However, the variety of
coconut used in producing CPVCO is unknown and
as such may also be a factor in the case of POV. The
variety of coconut used did not affect the quality char-
acteristics of the samples, as demonstrated by VCOs
produced through the desiccated coconut meat-40 C
and coconut milk-40 C incubation methods. A low
moisture content can also be obtained regardless of
process (dry or wet) as long as the oil is efficiently
removed from other constituents.
Fatty Acid Composition
The fatty acid composition of the VCO samples var-
ied in the different coconut cultivars (Table 5). Analy-
sis of variance showed that majority of the fatty acids
varied significantly among oil samples. These differ-
ences in fatty acid composition of the VCOs are ex-
plained by varietal differences of coconuts used in
the production of these oils.
Lauric acid (12:0), the major fatty acid in coconut
oil, ranged from 49.05% (CS 1) to 52.55% (CS 3)
among the commercial VCO samples and from
47.63% (LTVCO-D) to 49.97% (CPVCO) among
the laboratory-produced VCO samples. The lauric acid
contents of VCO samples fall within the range as re-
ported in earlier studies on the fatty acid composition
of coconut oil (Laureles et al. 2002; Rosell et al. 1985;
del Rosario et al. 1989). CS 3 had the highest lauric
acid content among the samples analyzed, which was
4.92% points higher than that of LTVCO-D. Also,
CS 3 had the highest caprylic acid (8:0) content of
10.44%, 4.46% points higher compared to the other
VCO samples.
In the case of caproic (6:0) and linoleic acid (18:2),
some of the samples did not give a peak on the chro-
matogram for these fatty acids, and were thus re-
ported as non-detectable, which is defined as 0.05%
or less by CODEX (2003). The nondetectability of

Table 5. Fatty acid composition of different virgin coconut oil (VCO) and refined, bleached and deodorized coconut
oil (RBDCO) samples.

Sample Fatty Acid (%)1

6:0 8:0 10:0 12:0 14:0 16:0 18:0 + 18:1 18:2

caproic caprylic capric lauric myristic palmitic stearic and linoleic
oleic

RBDCO 0.47ab 8.90b 6.93b 51.04b 17.83d 7.49f 6.76fg ND

CS 1 ND 6.83ef 5.78ef 49.05de 20.08a 9.57b 8.68cde ND
CS 2 ND 7.54cd 6.46cd 51.29b 19.03b 8.45e 7.45ef ND
CS 3 0.60a 10.44a 7.61a 52.55a 16.79e 6.38g 5.63g ND
CS 4 0.43ab 7.76bc 6.60bc 49.93c 18.46bc 8.37e 8.45de ND
CS 5 ND 7.49cd 6.44cd 50.99b 19.21b 8.74e 7.76ef ND
CS 6 0.40ab 7.84bc 6.57c 49.64cd 18.57bc 8.52e 8.43de ND
CPVCO 0.44ab 7.71c 6.53c 49.97c 18.44bc 8.37e 8.55de ND
LTVCO-W ND 6.55g 5.37g 48.62e 18.36c 10.17a 10.73b ND
CGDVCO-W ND 5.98fg 5.53fg 48.37e 18.47bc 9.22cd 12.44a ND
LCVCO-W ND 7.00de 6.17de 49.52cd 17.97d 8.64e 10.71b ND
LTVCO-D 0.44ab 7.07de 5.96de 47.63f 19.95a 9.36bc 9.59cd 0.10b
CGDVCO-D 0.35b 6.41fg 5.55fg 48.62e 18.94bc 9.04d 10.95b 0.12a
LCVCO-D 0.44ab 7.17de 6.36cd 49.33cd 19.03b 8.54e 9.03cde 0.10b

1 In a column, means followed by the same letter are not significantly different from each other, p= 0.05.
CS - commercial sample of virgin coconut oil
CPVCO – cold processed virgin coconut oil
LTVCO-W – wet processed from Laguna Tall variety
CGDVCO-W – wet processed from Catigan Green Dwarf variety
LCVCO-W – wet processed from the hybrid of Laguna Tall and Catigan Green Dwarf
LTVCO-D – dry processed from Laguna Tall variety
CGDVCO-D – dry processed from Catigan Green Dwarf variety
LCVCO-D – dry processed from the hybrid of Laguna Tall and Catigan Green Dwarf
RBDCO – refined, bleached and deodorized coconut oil.

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Comparative Physicochemical Characteristics of Virgin Coconut Oil Vermont P. Dia et al.

these fatty acids in the oil produced may be attributed and 777.1 mg tocopherol per gram of oil) which, after
to the process on how the oil was produced. The pres- the deodorization step, was reduced to 38.9 and 55
ence of an aqueous phase during incubation of the mg per gram of oil corresponding to 93% and 94.5%
coconut milk may have altered these fatty acids. It is loss. However, Mañalac produced coconut oil via the
to be noted that the wet process (coconut milk-40 C copra route, which would indicate that the testa of the
incubation wet method) resulted in the loss or coconut was included in the process.
nondetectability of caproic acid. It is possible for ca- To test this hypothesis, coconut testa and coconut
proic acid to join the aqueous phase because of its milk were subjected to α-tocopherol analysis. HPLC
chain length and partial solubility in water while li- analysis showed that the coconut testa contained 732
noleic acid may have undergone oxidation, since the mg tocopherol per gram of testa while α-tocopherol
presence of water increases the rate of lipid oxidation was not detected in the coconut milk. Our finding
due to increased mobility of reactants. (Labuza 1968; shows that the α-tocopherol detected by Mañalac was
Labuza et al. 1972). Caproic acid and linoleic acid due to the testa and not the coconut meat. Further-
may be practically “lost” during incubation of the co- more, the spectrophotometric method used in the analy-
conut milk sis of α-tocopherol by Mañalac was reported to suf-
The fatty acid composition of CPVCO seems to fer from interferences with substances such as
be more similar to that of some of the commercial carotenes, vitamin A, fats and oils, glycerol and oleic
VCOs since these oils could have been obtained from acid (Kaunitz and Beaver 1944a,b). Since coconut
several varieties of coconuts.
While the changes (<1%) observed in some of
the fatty acid content of the VCO produced by the Table 6. α-Tocopherol profile of coconut and its prod-
wet or dry method were statistically significant, such ucts.
differences might not be large enough to produce dif-
ferences in the quality of the VCO. Sample µg g-1)
Content (µ
With regard to other fatty acids, CS 1 had the
RBDCO None detected
highest amount of myristic acid, LTVCO-W had the CS 1 None detected
highest palmitic acid content and wet processed VCO CS 2 None detected
from Catigan Green Dwarf variety (CGDVCO-W) CS 3 None detected
had the highest stearic acid and oleic acid content. CS 4 None detected
It can be seen from Table 5 that the fatty acid CS 5 None detected
CS 6 None detected
content of the VCO samples was 60% to 70% short
CPVCO None detected
to medium chain fatty acid, which explains the high LTVCO-W None detected
saponification number of VCO as shown in Table 3. CGDVCO-W None detected
Also, the high iodine number (Table 3) of dry pro- LCVCO-W None detected
cessed VCO than wet processed VCO may be due LTVCO-D None detected
to the relatively higher linoleic acid content of the CGDVCO-D None detected
LCVCO-D None detected
former than the latter. Coconut milk None detected
Compared to RBDCO, the fatty acid content of Coconut testa 732
the VCO samples varied significantly especially for
8:0, 10:0, 12:0, 16:0, 18:0 and 18:1 fatty acids. These Analysis done by HPLC using an ODS column, methanol as mobile
phase, 0.5 mL min-1 flow rate, 290 nm.
differences may be accounted for by varietal differ- CS - commercial sample of virgin coconut oil
ences of coconut used in the production of oil and the CPVCO – cold processed virgin coconut oil
destruction of some fatty acids during production. LTVCO-W – wet processed from Laguna Tall variety
CGDVCO-W – wet processed from Catigan Green Dwarf variety
LCVCO-W – wet processed from the hybrid of Laguna Tall and
α -Tocopherol Analysis Catigan Green Dwarf
α-tocopherol analysis (Table 6) showed that the VCO LTVCO-D – dry processed from Laguna Tall variety
samples did not contain a-tocopherol in contrast to CGDVCO-D – dry processed from Catigan Green Dwarf variety
LCVCO-D – dry processed from the hybrid of Laguna Tall and Catigan
what was claimed by others. Mañalac (1970) reported Green Dwarf
that coconut oil contained natural tocopherol (721.06 RBDCO – refined, bleached and deodorized coconut oil.

470 The Philippine Agricultural Scientist Vol. 88 No. 4 (December 2005)

Comparative Physicochemical Characteristics of Virgin Coconut Oil Vermont P. Dia et al.

Table 7. Total phenolic content of different virgin coco- by wet processing contained 80 mg polyphenol frac-
nut oil (VCO) products, refined, bleached and deodor- tion per 100 g oil (the authors did not mention the
ized coconut oil (RBDCO) and other samples.
standard used). They attributed the prevention of LDL
Sample Phenolic Content1 oxidation by VCO in rats to polyphenols.
Together with the VCO samples, the total phe-
RBDCO 0.00e nolic content of coconut meat, olive oil and grape wine
CS 1 49.07c was also analyzed. The total phenolic content of co-
CS 2 44.06c conut meat was 1092.55 mg catechin per kg coconut
CS 3 38.76dc
CS 4 36.40dc
meat similar to the value reported by Baldiviano et al.
CS 5 35.26dc (1999). For olive oil and grape wine, the total phenolic
CS 6 41.52dc contents were 318.64 mg catechin per kg and 1326.12
CPVCO 66.56b mg catechin per kg, respectively. Keceli and Gordon
LTVCO-W 91.90a (2001) reported that the total phenolic contents of ol-
CGDVCO-W 63.42b
ives and olive oil extracts were 5100 mg caffeic acid
LCVCO-W 38.71dc
LTVCO-D 26.99d per kg and 180 mg caffeic acid per kg, respectively.
CGDVCO-D 32.37dc However, it is difficult to compare the values obtained
LCVCO-D 22.88d by various authors because of the different standards
Olive oil 318.64 and/or methodology used. The difference between the
Grape wine 1326.12 total phenolic content of the extracts can be attrib-
Coconut meat 1092.55
uted to the large proportion of water-soluble antioxi-
1 In a column, means followed by the same letter are not dants, which are lost during oil extraction. Also, pro-
significantly different from each other, p= 0.05. cessing can alter and often damage fruit and veg-
Total phenolic content expressed as mg catechin kg -1 sample etable antioxidants. Maceration, heating and various
measured by modified procedure by Folin-Ciocalteau (1927) separation steps result in oxidation, thermal degrada-
using catechin as standard.
CS - commercial sample of virgin coconut oil
tion, leaching and other events that lead to lower lev-
CPVCO – cold processed virgin coconut oil els of antioxidants in processed food compared with
LTVCO-W – wet processed from Laguna Tall variety fresh food. This is particularly true in the case of vita-
CGDVCO-W – wet processed from Catigan Green Dwarf variety min C and phenolic antioxidants (Kalt 2005). In addi-
LCVCO-W – wet processed from the hybrid of Laguna Tall and
Catigan Green Dwarf tion, the decrease in total phenolic content may be
LTVCO-D – dry processed from Laguna Tall variety due to the interaction of polyphenols with other sub-
CGDVCO-D – dry processed from Catigan Green Dwarf variety stances present in the samplesuch as proteins, form-
LCVCO-D – dry processed from the hybrid of Laguna Tall and Catigan
Green Dwarf
ing insoluble complexes (Matsuo and Itoo 1982). When
RBDCO – refined, bleached and deodorized coconut oil. compared to other food samples above, VCO samples
used in this study had the least amount of polyphe-
nols.
testa is removed in the production of VCO, VCO may
not contain a-tocopherol. Antioxidant Potential of VCO
Among the VCO samples, LTVCO-W exhibited the
Total Phenolic Content highest antioxidant activity (47%) as shown by its low
VCO produced by the dry method contained the least relative peroxidation comparable to that exhibited by
amount of polyphenols from 22.88 to 32.37 mg cat- 200 mg of a-tocopherol standard (Fig. 1) and about
echin equivalent per kg oil (Table 7) because of the 50% to 60% lower than the BHT and BHA stan-
destruction of phenolics during the expulsion step in dards. The other laboratory-produced VCOs exhib-
the dry processing of VCO. An increase in tempera- ited 55 to 65% relative peroxidation. On the other hand,
ture of 47.0 C during oil expulsion may have altered the commercial VCOs had values ranging from 65%
some of the phenolics originally present in the oil. The (for CS6) and 78% (for CS1). RBDCO exhibited the
LTVCO-W sample had the highest polyphenol con- lowest value of 90% relative peroxidation among the
tent, which was 91.90 mg catechin per kg oil. Nevin coconut oil samples. The antioxidant activity of virgin
and Rajamohan (2004) reported that VCO obtained coconut oil can be attributed to its total phenolic con-

The Philippine Agricultural Scientist Vol. 88 No. 4 (December 2005) 471

Comparative Physicochemical Characteristics of Virgin Coconut Oil Vermont P. Dia et al.

Control

αa-tocopherol
-tocopherol
BHA
BHT
CPVCO
LCVCOD
CGDVCOD
LTVCOD
Sample

LCVCOW
CGDVCOW
LTVCOW
CS 6
CS 5
CS 4
CS 3
CS 2
CS 1
RBDCO

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
Relative Peroxidation

Fig. 1. Antioxidant potential of different VCO samples.Control samples: α- tocopherol, BHT and BHA at 200 µg.

tent. Phenolic antioxidants inhibit autoxidation of lip-
ids (RH) by trapping intermediate peroxyl radical in
two ways: first, the peroxyl radical abstracts hydro-
gen proton from the phenolic antioxidant to yield hy-
droperoxide and aroxyl radical and, second, aroxyl
radical undergo radical-radical coupling to give per-
oxide products (Chimi et al. 1991).
The natural phenols of VCO can be attributed to
the fact that it does not undergo refining process, which
partly preserves the phenolic compounds naturally
present in coconut endosperm. The same observation
was noted in virgin olive oils. Since virgin olive oils
are not refined, the phenolic compounds are partly
preserved, and these are reportedly responsible for
their higher stability to autoxidation (Satue et al. 1995).
The high antioxidant activity of LTVCO-W (low
relative peroxidation) can be explained by its high to-
tal phenolic content of 91.12 mg catechin equivalents
per kg. It was also observed that among the labora-
tory-produced VCO samples, the VCO produced by
the dry method showed the lowest antioxidant activ-
ity. This may be due to the destruction of the polyphe-
nols by heat, 47.0 C, generated during the expulsion
of oil from desiccated coconut.
Crude Protein Content
The crude protein content of the VCO samples ranged
from 0.0625% to 0.1952% (Table 8). Unlike the
RBDCO, which does not contain crude protein, VCO
does not undergo refining process which may account
for the presence of protein in the oil samples. The
small protein content of the VCO may be due to the
oleosins, which are the proteins in the membrane of
the oil bodies (Regalado et al. 2004). Also, phospho-
lipids may contribute to the crude protein content of
the samples since it also contains nitrogen. The defi-
nition of crude protein includes all nitrogenous sub-
stances present in the food be it protein or non-pro-
tein compounds. Protein and phospholipids are re-
moved from oil by the refining process by means of
settling and degumming steps wherein oil is treated
with water (heated if necessary) to attract non-fat
materials present in oil. Since VCO samples did not
undergo refining process, it is expected that it will

472 The Philippine Agricultural Scientist Vol. 88 No. 4 (December 2005)

Comparative Physicochemical Characteristics of Virgin Coconut Oil Vermont P. Dia et al.

Table 8. Total nitrogen and crude protein content of The physical properties of specific gravity and
different virgin coconut oil (VCO) and refined, bleached melting point were observed to be not affected by
and deodorized coconut oil (RBDCO) samples.
any of the processes or by the variety of the coconut
Sample Crude Protein (%)1 used. Except for one sample, the FFA content of the
laboratory-produced samples did not differ signifi-
RBDCO 0.00b cantly while differences were noted with peroxide
CS 1 0.07a values, indicating that process or variety did not af-
CS 2 0.11a fect FFA level but influenced POVs. It was also ob-
CS 3 0.11a
CS 4 0.12a
served that a low moisture content can be obtained
CS 5 0.11a regardless of process as long as the oil is efficiently
CS 6 0.10a removed from other constituents. The fatty acid com-
CPVCO 0.11a position of the VCOs was found to be affected by
LTVCO-W 0.06a variety but the differences (<1%) may not be large
CGDVCO-W 0.07a
enough to produce differences in the quality of the
LCVCO-W 0.07a
LTVCO-D 0.10a VCOs.
CGDVCO-D 0.09a This study further showed the nondetectable lev-
LCVCO-D 0.09a els of α-tocopherol, the relatively low levels of
1
polyphenols and antioxidant potential of VCO and the
In a column, means followed by the same letter are not signifi-
cantly different from each other, p= 0.05.
presence of small amounts of protein in the VCO.
Crude protein was calculated using the nitrogen content of the The commercial samples had as much as two to three
sample multiplied by 6.25. times higher peroxide values and relatively higher
CS - commercial sample of virgin coconut oil moisture content than laboratory-produced VCOs.
CPVCO – cold processed virgin coconut oil
LTVCO-W – wet processed from Laguna Tall variety This may be reflective of the relative freshness of the
CGDVCO-W – wet processed from Catigan Green Dwarf variety laboratory-produced VCOs compared with the com-
LCVCO-W – wet processed from the hybrid of Laguna Tall and mercial ones.
Catigan Green Dwarf
LTVCO-D – dry processed from Laguna Tall variety
While the VCOs produced by the three methods
CGDVCO-D – dry processed from Catigan Green Dwarf variety and using different varieties had some differences in
LCVCO-D – dry processed from the hybrid of Laguna Tall and chemical and quality properties, these differences may
Catigan Green Dwarf
RBDCO – refined, bleached and deodorized coconut oil.
not be large enough to significantly affect the overall
quality of the VCO. Further, their levels are still within
the CODEX standards for coconut oil and the pro-
posed BAFS-PNS standards for virgin coconut oils.
contain non-oil substances such as small amounts of This may be due to the relatively mild process used in
proteins. the three methods in which the highest temperature
attained was 47 C. Some of the commercial samples,
however, exceeded the limits of the standards such
CONCLUSION as for moisture content and free fatty acid content.
The present study utilized three processes of produc- The free fatty acid content of the samples as well
ing VCO (desiccated coconut meat-40 C incubation as their moisture content may eventually have a bear-
method, coconut milk-40 C incubation method and ing on the qualities of the VCOs during storage. Thus,
coconut milk-freeze-and-thaw method) during which a study on the storage stability of VCO samples pro-
the highest temperature attained was around 47 C duced by different methods is now being conducted.
during expulsion of the oil, 40 C and 30 to 32 C, re- The effect of higher temperature (>50 C) during pro-
spectively. The samples used were two varieties and cessing on the quality of VCO is likewise important to
their hybrid for the first two processes and coconuts determine and is being investigated.
from the market presumed to be a mixture of variet-
ies were used for the third process.

The Philippine Agricultural Scientist Vol. 88 No. 4 (December 2005) 473

Comparative Physicochemical Characteristics of Virgin Coconut Oil
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
We would like to thank the Commission on Higher
Education for the thesis support to the senior author,
the Philippine Coconut Authority (Manila and
Zamboanga Offices) through Mr. Gerardo Santos, Dr.
Juanito Sangalang for the coconut samples used in
the study and Dr. Olivia M. del Rosario for the com-
mercial virgin coconut oil samples.
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