Monitoring of contaminants in recycled paperboard for food contact applications.

BACKGROUND: The lack of harmonized European legislation on food packaging led the Confederation of European Paper Industries to the proposal of a voluntary Industry Guideline for the compliance of paper and board materials for food contact applications. In the present work, a previously established method for the simultaneous determination of contaminants commonly found in recycled paperboard was improved and its applicability as a quality control tool in the paper industry was also assessed. The method involves a sample pre-treatment followed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) analysis. RESULTS: For analysis, paperboard samples were collected both from three sections of the same reel and from different reels belonging to the same production run. Results highlighted no significant differences in terms of contaminant distribution among samples, which ensured good sampling representativeness. The performance of the method was considerably improved in terms of linearity range, limits of detection and quantification (5- to 2-fold lower) by using a quadrupole GC/MS system instead of an ion trap GC/MS system. CONCLUSION: The proposed method could offer a key strategy for analysis of benzophenone derivatives, diisopropyl naphthalene and phthalates in recycled paperboard in order to assess compliance of food packaging with the voluntary limits recommended by the Industry Guideline. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.

Characterization of the Authenticity of Pasta di Gragnano Protected Geographical Indication Through Flavor Component Analysis by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry and Chemometric Tools.

An authentication study based on headspace solid-phase microextraction/GC-MS was performed with a set of 60 samples representative of traditional "Pasta di Gragnano protected geographical indication (PGI)" and the most common Italian pasta brands. Multivariate chemometric tools were used to classify the samples based on the chemical information provided from 20 target flavor compounds, including Maillard reaction and lipid oxidation products. Pattern recognition by principal component analysis and linear discriminant analysis showed a natural grouping of samples according to the drying process adopted for their production (i.e., the traditional Cirillo method versus a high-temperature approach). Subsequently, soft independent modeling by class analogy (SIMCA) and unequal dispersed classes (UNEQ) were used to build class models at 95% confidence and 100% sensitivity levels (forced models) for predictive classification purposes. The good performance obtained from the models in terms of cross-validation efficiency (SIMCA, 57.01%; UNEQ, 86.60%; 100% for both forced models) highlighted that targeted analysis of flavor profiles could be used to assess the authenticity of Pasta di Gragnano PGI samples. Hence, the proposed method may help to protect Pasta di Gragnano PGI from label frauds by verifying whether samples comply with statements concerning drying process conditions as stated in the product specification.

Furosine as a pasta quality marker: evaluation by an innovative and fast chromatographic approach.

A fast and simple high-performance liquid chromatography method suitable for determining furosine level in heat-treated food samples was developed. The analysis of furosine was performed by a novel mixed-mode column that provides multiple and simultaneous retention mechanisms including cation-exchange, anion-exchange, reversed-phase, or hydrophilic interaction. Each retention mechanism could be independently controlled by setting chromatographic conditions. Adequate retention and selectivity of polar charged furosine were achieved by adjusting mobile phase pH, buffer concentration, organic content, and ionic strength. The optimized method was successfully applied to determinate furosine in durum wheat semolina pasta samples. Furosine level in pasta may be used as a reliable marker of health and nutritional damage occurring during pasta manufacture. Indeed, a low content of furosine is generally related to high nutritional quality of food and application of mild heat treatments. A wide range of dry pasta samples, collected from both supermarkets (large-scale retail trade) and shops selling local products, were analyzed. Variable amounts of furosine, ranging from 107 to 506 mg/100 g of protein, were found in pasta samples. The proposed method allows to discriminate products submitted to different time-temperature conditions during the drying process. At the same time, it may be used to highlight potential label fraud.