Analysis of volatile fruit components by headspace solid-phase microextraction

A method based on headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) has been developed for the analysis of volatile compounds in fruits. Conditions of sampling have been tuned. Repeatability and recoveries obtained with this method have been determined by using a mixture of typical components of fruit aroma. Several fruits, such as raspberries, strawberries, blackberries, banana and mango, have been analysed by the proposed method. The patterns obtained include compounds typically found in fresh fruits and compounds formed during processing or storage. The results showed the use of the technique for fruit characterization and its potential as a routine method for analyzing changes in key flavour compounds during different fruit processing regimes.