The colour of rosehip oil extracted by cold pressing is characterised by its reddish pigmentation, which is associated with carotenoid content. In contrast, the solvent-extracted oil has a yellowish colour, which could be due to the ability of the organic solvent to extract pigments and several other substances from the seeds, and/or to the degradation of the red pigment owing to the high temperature of the oil extraction process. Nine carotenoids are found in rosehips: three carotenes (lycopene, ζ-carotene, β-carotene) and six xanthophylls (neoxanthin, trans-violaxanthin, cis-violaxan-thin, 5,6-epoxylutein, lutein, β-cryptoxanthin). This high number of compounds classifies these fruits among those with the greatest variety of carotenoid pigments. Rose hips contained the highest concentrations of total carotenoids, which are mainly comprised of lycopene and beta-carotene.