In this work, the chemical composition analysis was performed for cold pressed oils obtained from the 15 sunflower hybrids grown in Serbia and Argentina, as well as the determination of their oxidative quality. The fatty acid composition and bioactive compounds including total tocopherols, phenols, carotenoids, and chlorophyll contents were investigated. The oxidation products were monitored through the peroxide value (PV), anisidine value (AnV), conjugated dienes (CD) and conjugated trienes (CT) content, and total oxidation index (TOTOX) under accelerated oxidation conditions by the oven method. Linoleic acid was the most abundant fatty acid in investigated oil samples, followed by oleic and palmitic acids. The mean contents of total tocopherols, phenols, carotenoids, and chlorophyll were 518.24, 9.42, 7.54 and 0.99 mg/kg, respectively. In order to obtain an overview of sample variations according to the tested parameters Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was applied. PCA indicated that phenols, chlorophyll, linoleic and oleic acid were the most effective variables for the differentiation of sunflower hybrids grown in Serbia and Argentina. Furthermore, based on the fatty acid composition and bioactive compounds content in the oils, a new Artificial Neural Network (ANN) model was developed to predict the oxidative stability parameters of cold pressed sunflower oil.

Refined sunflower oil has dissimilar shelf life compared to cold-pressed sunflower oil, which increases the use of refined oil, and it is more abundant in the diet. On the other hand, the production of cold-pressed oils does not require chemical processing. Moreover, these oils contain significant amounts of bioactive components with a beneficial health effect. Breeders are trying to create new sunflower hybrids for the production of cold-pressed oil with improved oxidative characteristics. This study aims to examine the rancidity of 24 cold-pressed sunflower oils of new hybrids under accelerated thermal stability test conditions (Rancimat and Schaal oven tests) and to compare the obtained results with refined sunflower oil. According to investigated oxidative parameters, the most similar to refined sunflower oil was the H20 sample with the induction period determined by the Rancimat test of 9.55 ± 0.00 h, compared to 9.49 ± 0.00 h, obtained in refined sunflower oil. The total oxidation value of the H20 sample amounted to 3.26 ± 0.12, while in refined sunflower oil this value was 2.12 ± 1.73.