*Color Analysis*

The data obtained by the color analysis of the olive oil used as a vehicle and of the formulated product used to fill the soft capsules are reported in Table 1. The high luminance (70.46) of the pale yellow extra-virgin olive oil was changed to a very low value (14.96), which accounts for the very dark brown color of the formulated product. This drastic

change, not shown by the only a\* parameter, a weak red parameter, was accompanied by a drastic decrease of b\* (positive, yellow parameter) and correlated saturation (C\*ab), as well as the nuance turning from pale yellow to dark orange.


**Table 1.** CIEL\*a\*b\* parameters of the carrier olive oil and of the filling formulated product.

The calculated color differences of the Graminex G60TM Flower Pollen Extract used for the formulation showed a much lower luminance (ΔL\*, −71), a little redder color and a more yellow sample, much darker and browner, but less opaque in respect to the pollen powder used in the formulation, whose CIEL\*a\*b\* parameters, reported in our previous work [15], were L\* 86.05; a\* 1.71; b\* 11.96; C\*ab 12.09; hab 81.88. On the other hand, if slightly less important differences were shown between the formulated product and the extra virgin olive oil in terms of L\* (ΔL\* −55), and not-relevant changes of a\* were registered, more significant differences were, in contrast, shown by the b\* parameter (Δb\*, −98) so that, on the whole, the sample appeared opaque, dark, and completely without color.

It seems of particular concern to compare matrices so different in superficial characteristics (solid powder, oily, sticky paste) and coming from different compositions and mixtures. Moreover, to our knowledge only one study is available, in which microscopic analysis, NIR spectroscopy, e-nose and e-tongue methods, as well as color analysis, were applied to perform a discrimination of bee pollens. As the authors reported, chemical composition largely depended on the botanical origin and can change due to the oxidation process. Authors also reported that dominance of positive a\* and b\* parameters could account for carotenoid and flavonoid compounds [32].

This statement agrees with the analyses we performed on the carrier oil and on the formulation after 9 months of storage (Figure 9), which showed slight modification of oil, towards a greener color, and of the formulation to a less intense brown, which could both account for a slight discoloration of carotenoids, both coming from the oil and from the pollen in the case of the formulated mixture. We reported in our previous works the carotenoid bleaching in powder infant formulas and in powder allium samples evaluated by color analyses [33,34].

**Figure 9.** Color palette of olive oil ((**A**): t◦; (**B**) t 9 months) and of the formulated product ((**C**): t◦; (**D**): t 9 months) and relative reflectance curves.
