## 3 Results and Discussion
### PEF Economic Analysis  
The introduction of PEF into the existing production process has yielded positive outcomes in terms of efficiency, contributing to a significant reduction of 15 min in the malaxation stage. This process improvement does not compromise the quality parameters of olive oil when compared to the traditional process without PEF. Thus, the price of the final product is not compromised when PEF is applied and should be similar to the market price of extra virgin olive oil. The 15 min reduction in processing time holds considerable economic implications. Considering a production cycle involving 350 kg of olives, the implementation of PEF can increase annual olive oil production by 12.3%, which translates to an increase in revenue and gross profit of 12.3% and 36.8%, respectively (Table 6).  
Considering the scale of production, achieving a reasonable annual return on investment (ROI) of 20% would require an initial investment in equipment of EUR 31,000. However, this price significantly deviates from market rates. Consequently, investing in PEF might not be the optimal economic decision for low-volume production. In such instances, it is advisable to explore equipment rental options, especially given that production only occurs during a three-month period each year.  
\begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c} \hline \hline  & **Control** & **PEF** \\ \hline Olive production per cycle (kg) & 350 & 350 \\ Cycle time (min) & 160 & 145 \\ Revenue (EUR) & 215,819 & 242,252 \\ Gross profit (EUR) & 18,368 & 25,123 \\ Olive oil production (L) & 33,617 & 37,734 \\ Energy consumption (kW) & 48,791 & 49,948 \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table}
Table 6: Economic viability results of control and PEF olive oils.  
\begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c} \hline \hline
**Attributes** & **Parameters** & **Control** & **PEF** \\ \hline Positive & Fruity * & 3 & 2.5 \\ Positive & Bitter * & 2 & 2 \\ Positive & Pungent * & 4.5 & 3.5 \\ Negative & Defects * & 0 & 0 \\ Final classification & EVOO & EVOO \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table}
Table 5: Sensory evaluation of control and PEF olive oils was obtained.  
Despite olive oil plants worldwide being predominantly composed of small enterprises with production capacities ranging from 0.4 to 2 tons/h of olive paste, the majority of global olive oil production occurs in medium- to large-scale olive processing plants capable of producing between 2 and 12 tons/h [2]. In this case, considering a production of 5 tons per cycle and no increase in electrical consumption, the cost of equipment to achieve an ROI of 20% would be EUR 450,000. These results lead to the conclusion that PEF represents a worthwhile investment for medium- to high-olive oil productions.  
From a sustainability perspective, the implementation of PEF results in a notable 8.8% reduction in electricity consumption per liter of olive oil produced, consequently reducing greenhouse gas emissions. As companies worldwide increasingly prioritize eco-friendly practices, the integration of technologies like PEF emerges as a viable option to improve olive oil production sustainability.  
It is noteworthy that the intrinsic design of the PEF installation, characterized by its seamless integration into the existing production and minimal maintenance requirements, eliminates the need for process modifications. Therefore, considerations related to labor, water consumption, and consumables (ex. packaging) were not considered when comparing the economic output of the two production methods.