FOOD TESTING - APPLICATION NOTEBOOK

Importance of the topic

Ensuring the safety and quality of food products requires reliable methods for detecting trace levels of veterinary drug residues, pesticide contaminants, mycotoxins, dyes and industrial chemicals. Regulatory bodies worldwide mandate low-part-per-billion limits for these analytes in meat, milk, honey, produce, grains and infant formulas. Advanced sample preparation and sensitive analytical techniques are essential to comply with legislation, protect public health and maintain consumer confidence.

Aims and overview

This application compendium presents a comprehensive suite of workflows for food testing and quality control, optimized for high throughput, reproducibility and regulatory compliance. It covers sample preparation strategies—including solid-phase extraction (SPE) and dispersive SPE (QuEChERS)—and advanced separation and detection solutions (HPLC, UPLC, GC; UV, FLR, MS/MS). Representative applications illustrate multi-residue screening of veterinary drugs, pesticides and contaminants in diverse matrices.

Methodology and instrumentation

• Sample preparation: Retention–cleanup–elution SPE protocols (Oasis HLB, MCX, MAX, Accell QMA/CM) and QuEChERS approaches (DisQuE Pouch, d-SPE sorbents) tailored to polar, non-polar and ionic analytes.
• Matrix types: Meat (pork, chicken, beef, salmon), milk, honey, fruits, vegetables, grains, water, infant formula.
• Instrumentation: Waters Alliance and ACQUITY UPLC systems; ACQUITY UPLC BEH, CSH, HSS, Atlantis and XBridge columns; Acquity TQD, Xevo TQ-S, Quattro micro mass spectrometers; GC-MS with RTX-5MS; UV/FLR detection.

Main results and discussion

• Veterinary drugs: Low-ng/g LOQs achieved for β2-agonists, aminoglycosides, avermectins, chloramphenicol, steroids and multi-class panels in meat and milk. Typical recoveries 70–110% (RSD <15%).
• Pesticides and contaminants: Acrylamide in fried potatoes; aflatoxins in cereals and nuts; bisphenols in infant formula; carbamates, conazole fungicides and organophosphates in juices and vegetables; PFAS in water; melamine and cyanuric acid in formula; nitrofurans in honey—all quantified at low ppb levels with optimized SPE or QuEChERS cleanup and LC/MS or GC/MS detection.
• Mycotoxins and dyes: Microcystins in water by LC/MS/MS; malachite green in fish via HPLC/UV and UPLC/MS/MS.

Benefits and practical applications

These workflows deliver high sensitivity, low matrix interference and efficient sample throughput. Modular SPE cartridges and QuEChERS kits simplify method development and meet official AOAC/CEN methods. Integrated software and remote diagnostic services support method performance and compliance.

Future trends and opportunities

Emerging innovations include µElution plates, online SPE, intelligent sorbent chemistries for novel analytes, high-resolution MS for non-target screening, automated sample prep, and advanced data analytics. These developments will expand capabilities for comprehensive food safety surveillance.

Conclusion

Optimized sample preparation combined with advanced separation and MS/MS detection ensures robust, reproducible and sensitive multi-residue analysis across diverse food matrices. The described strategies enable laboratories to address evolving regulatory requirements and protect consumer health.

Reference

Waters Application Notes and official AOAC/CEN methods.