Evaluation of Appropriate Conditions for Efficient Simultaneous Determination of US EPA and EU Priority Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Various Food Categories and Assessment of Their Consumption Risk

• Published in: Journal of agricultural and food chemistry Vol. 72; no. 6; pp. 3113 - 3141
• Main Authors: Lin, Yi-Jun, Liao, Po-Lin, Wu, Yi-Hsien Samuel, Wang, Yi, Lin, Jau-Tien, Yang, Deng-Jye
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Chemical Society 14.02.2024
• Subjects: Animals; European Union; Food Safety and Toxicology; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry - methods; Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons - analysis; Tandem Mass Spectrometry - methods; United States; United States Environmental Protection Agency; United States; risk assessment; polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs); analysis; QuEChERS condition; food matrix
• ISSN: 0021-8561; 1520-5118
• DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.3c05897

The QuEChERS (quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged and safe) conditions were optimized for efficient determination of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) and European Union (EU) priority polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) for the categories of grains, tuber & starchy vegetables, soy beans and products, fish & seafood, and poultry & meat, including raw materials and their corresponding products. The PAHs were analyzed using ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography with temperature-controlled fluorescence detection and gas chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry. The established conditions had good accuracy, repeatability, and precision. Environmental pollution and processing methods influence the level of PAHs in samples. The low molecular weight PAHs were present in all raw materials, and processing increased high and low molecular weight PAHs in the products. The excess cancer risk for consumption of PAHs in cooked samples was mostly acceptable; a small number of samples might be of slight concern in certain age groups.