**8. Oleocanthal concentration in olive oil and factors which may affect its concentration**

Oleocanthal concentration in EVOO is highly variable, ranging from as little as 0.2 mg/kg to as high as 498 mg/kg (Gomez-Rico et al., 2006). Such variation in oleocanthal concentration amongst differing EVOOs may be due to multiple factors that have the capacity to modify the concentration of this compound (Carrasco-Pancorbo et al., 2005). These factors include: method of phenolic extraction and quantification, geographic region of olive growth, olive tree cultivar, agricultural techniques applied to cultivate olives, olive maturity, processing of the olives to oil, storage of oil, and domestic heat application to oil.
