European food safety research: An explorative study with funding experts' consultation

The European research area exhibits considerable opacity and fragmentation in food safety research funding and organizational structures, impeding the exploitation of existing research potential across European countries. Given that food safety is inherently linked to the societal challenges of our time, identifying and removing existing barriers to research funding in this area is crucial. Towards investigating this matter, interviews were conducted with funding bodies from six European countries to assess key issues related to research funding in general and food safety in particular. Funding experts were then invited to a workshop to jointly discuss the challenges identified and explore strategies to address them. Evaluation of the food safety research funding situation in selected European countries revealed both convergences and significant differences among national funding bodies. Engaging with funding experts provided invaluable insights into the issues encountered with research funding, such as inadequate call management staff or insufficient research funds, culminating in a set of recommendations for action to remedy the situation.

Differentiation of sea buckthorn syrups processed by high pressure, pulsed electric fields, ohmic heating, and thermal pasteurization based on quality evaluation and chemical fingerprinting

Introduction

Impact of processing on product characteristics, sustainability, traceability, authenticity, and public health along the food chain becomes more and more important not only to the producer but also to the customer and the trust of a consumer toward a brand. In recent years, the number of juices and smoothies containing so called super foods or fruits, which have been "gently pasteurized," has increased significantly. However, the term "gentle pasteurization" related to the application of emerging preservation technologies such as pulsed electric fields (PEF), high pressure processing (HPP) or ohmic heating (OH) is not clearly defined.

Methods

Therefore, the presented study investigated the influence of PEF, HPP, OH, and thermal treatment on quality characteristics and microbial safety of sea buckthorn syrup. Syrups from two different varieties were investigated under the following conditions HPP (600 MPa 4-8 min), OH (83°C and 90°C), PEF (29.5 kV/cm, 6 μs, 100 Hz), and thermal (88°C, hot filling). Analyses to test the influence on quality parameters like ascorbic acid (AA), flavonoids, carotenoids, tocopherols, antioxidant activity; metabolomical/chemical profiling (fingerprinting) via U-HPLC-HRMS/MS (here especially flavonoids and fatty acids); sensory evaluation, as well as microbial stability including storage, were conducted.

Results and discussion

Independent from the treatment, the samples were stable over 8 weeks of storage at 4°C. The influence on the nutrient content [Ascorbic acid (AA), total antioxidant activity (TAA), total phenolic compounds (TPC), tocopherols (Vit E)] was similar for all tested technologies. Employing statistical evaluation Principal Component Analysis (PCA) a clear clustering based on the processing technologies was observed. Flavonoids as well as fatty acids were significantly impacted by the type of used preservation technology. This was obvious during the storage time of PEF and HPP syrups, where enzyme activity was still active. The color as well as taste of the syrups were found to be more fresh-like for the HPP treated samples.

Authentication of Panax Ginseng‑Based Herbal Teas Using “Chemical Markers” Strategy

This article describes the method development involved in the authentication of nutraceuticals, particularly those containing Panax ginseng, which is popular because of possible positive effects on human health. For this purpose, an analytical strategy based on a metabolomic approach was chosen. The aqueous methanolic extracts were analyzed using ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC–HRMS). Generated data were processed by advanced statistical methods that enabled the specific markers for Panax ginseng and other plants that can be used for its adulteration (Gynostemma pentaphyllum, Withania somnifera, Eleutherococcus senticosus) to be found. The developed method is primarily intended for verifying the presence of Panax ginseng and its adulterants in Panax ginseng-based herbal teas.

A Non-Targeted High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry Study for Extra Virgin Olive Oil Adulteration with Soft Refined Oils: Preliminary Findings from Two Different Laboratories

This work presents a non-targeted high-resolution mass spectrometry inter-laboratory study for the detection of new chemical markers responsible of soft refined oils addition to extra virgin olive oils. Refined oils (soft deodorized and soft deacidified) were prepared on a laboratory scale starting from low-quality olive oils and analyzed together with a set of pure extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) samples and with mixtures of adulterated and pure EVOO at different percentages. The same analytical workflow was applied in two different laboratories equipped with two types of instrumentation (Q-Orbitrap and Q-TOF); a group of discriminant molecules was selected, and a tentative identification of compounds was also proposed. In summary, 12 molecules were identified as markers of this specific adulteration, and seven of them were selected as discriminative in both the laboratories, with a similar trend throughout the samples (i.e., propylene glycol 1 stearate). The results obtained in the two laboratories are comparable, concretely demonstrating the inter-laboratory repeatability of non-targeted studies. As a confirmation, the same markers were detected also in "in-house" mixtures and in suspect commercial deodorized mixtures, reinforcing the robustness of the results obtained and proving that, thanks to these molecules, mixtures containing at least 40% of adulterated oils can be detected.

Food fraud in oregano: Pesticide residues as adulteration markers

Oregano, a widely used and popular herb, is particularly vulnerable to fraud. Less valued plants, adulterants that are often used for dilution, may introduce into this commodity additional contaminants such as pesticide residues. In this study, more than 400 pesticides were screened in a representative set of 42 genuine and 34 adulterated dried oregano samples collected from various locations across Europe. The results obtained by advanced mass spectrometry-based methods, showed, that some pesticide residues could be detected in virtually all tested samples, nevertheless, on average, higher contamination was found in the adulterated oregano samples. Increased incidence of insecticides such as cyfluthrin, permethrin and cyhalothrin was typical for these samples, moreover, pyriproxyfen was detected exclusively in adulterated samples. Thus, based on a critical assessment of pesticide profiles, suspected adulterated oregano samples can be selected for follow up authenticity testing.

Evaluation of 11 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon metabolites in urine of Czech mothers and newborns

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) represent a large group of ubiquitous contaminants of the environment, including food chain where they are released as by-products of incomplete combustion of an organic matter. Epidemiological studies have shown that exposure to PAHs correlated with increased incidence of cancer. Carcinogenicity is associated mainly with metabolites that are formed during metabolic degradation of these substances in exposed organism. In this study monohydroxylated PAHs (OH-PAHs), the major metabolites excreted into urine, were determined in 531 urine samples collected from mothers and their newborns from two localities of the Czech Republic - heavily air polluted Karvina and control locality of Ceske Budejovice and in two sampling rounds - August-October 2013 (summer, less air polluted season) and January-April 2014 (winter, more air polluted season). From all targeted analytes, naphthalene-2-ol was the most abundant compound present in 100% of the samples and it represented also the analyte with the highest concentration. Median concentration of ΣOH-PAHs in the urine of children was on average 1.6 times lower compared to the respective mother which correlates with higher intake of PAHs by mothers. ΣOH-PAHs concentrations determined in mothers' urine collected in the summer were comparable in both localities. No significant increase occurred in Ceske Budejovice in winter, while in samples from the Karvina region a statistically significant difference (α=0.05) in the amount of ΣOH-PAHs was observed. The median concentrations of ΣOH-PAHs in mothers' urine samples in the winter were 1.5 times higher than in the summer in the same locality. The amounts of ΣOH-PAHs in newborns' urine from Karvina in the winter season were 1.5 times higher than in the summer collected in the same locality and 3.3 times higher when compared with the less polluted locality of Ceske Budejovice.

Fate of Free and Conjugated Mycotoxins within the Production of Distiller's Dried Grains with Solubles (DDGS)

Contamination of feed with mycotoxins represents a serious worldwide problem concerning animal health and related economic losses. The present paper provides comprehensive knowledge about the fate of mycotoxins during the production of distiller's dried grains with solubles (DDGS). The study was carried out using naturally infected maize material in five repetitions. For mycotoxin analysis, a QuEChERS-like ("Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged, and Safe") isolation approach and ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) was used. A significant increase of deoxynivalenol (DON) and its glycosylated form, DON-3-glucoside (DON-3-Glc), was observed during the first part of fermentation, when hydrolytic enzymes were added. After yeast addition, the total DON content rapidly decreased. An opposite trend was observed for fumonisin B1 (FB1), in which yeast addition contributed to increase of its content. Further considerable change in mycotoxin content occurred during the drying step, in which approximately two-thirds of the original content was lost.

Perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) and other halogenated compounds in fish from the upper Labe River basin

This study summarizes results on levels of 25 perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), three hexabromocyclododecane isomers (HBCDs), tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA), three brominated phenols and four hydroxylated derivates of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (OH-PBDEs) in 59fish samples collected in nine localities on two major rivers from the Czech Republic. To identify potential sources of these chemicals, several sampling sites located close to highly industrialized areas were also involved. The major PFAS representatives, perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), C9-C14 perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids (PFCAs) and perfluorooctane sulfonamide (FOSA) were detected in 100% fish samples. The concentration ranges of individual substances in the respective groups of PFASs were as follows: 0.572-61.3ngg(-)(1) wet weight (ww) for Tot-PFOS, 0.007-0.121ngg(-)(1)ww for perfluoroalkane sulfonates (PFSAs) (without PFOS isomers), 0.007-22.0ngg(-)(1)ww for PFCAs and 0.026-7.76ngg(-)(1)ww for FOSA. The highest contents of ∑PFASs (51.9ngg(-)(1)ww and 47.8ngg(-)(1)ww) were measured in fish muscle tissue from the locality Trmice situated on the Bílina River and Verdek on the Labe River, where chemical and/or textile industry is located. From 11 targeted BFRs, five compounds (α-HBCD, β-HBCD, γ-HBCD, TBBPA and 2,4,6-tribromophenol (TBP)) were determined in analyzed samples. The concentration ranged as follows: 3.15-1211ngg(-)(1) lipid weight (lw) for ∑HBCD, 4.99-203ngg(-)(1)lw for TBBPA and 1.76-107ngg(-)(1)lw for 2,4,6-TBP.

Analytical strategies for controlling polysorbate-based nanomicelles in fruit juice

This study focused on the detection and quantification of organic micelle-type nanoparticles (NPs) with polysorbate components (polysorbate 20 and polysorbate 80) in their micelle shells that could be used to load biologically active compounds into fruit juice. Several advanced analytical techniques were applied in the stepwise method development strategy used. In the first phase, a system consisting of ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography employing a size exclusion column coupled with an evaporative light scattering detector (UHPLC-SEC-ELSD) was used for the fractionation of micelle assemblies from other, lower molecular weight sample components. The limit of detection (LoD) of these polysorbate micelles in spiked apple juice was 500 μg mL(-1). After this screening step, mass spectrometric (MS) detection was utilized to confirm the presence of polysorbates in the detected micelles. Two alternative MS techniques were tested: (i) ambient high-resolution mass spectrometry employing a direct analysis in real time ion source coupled with an Orbitrap MS analyzer (DART-Orbitrap MS) enabled fast and simple detection of the polysorbates present in the samples, with a lowest calibration level (LCL) of 1000 μg mL(-1); (ii) ultrahigh-performance reversed-phase liquid chromatography coupled with high-resolution time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-HRTOF-MS) provided highly selective and sensitive detection and quantification of polysorbates with an LCL of 0.5 μg mL(-1).

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and halogenated persistent organic pollutants in canned fish and seafood products: smoked versus non-smoked products

In this study, levels of several groups of environmental contaminants represented by PAHs, PCBs, organochlorine pesticides and polybrominated diphenyl ethers were determined in various types of canned smoked and non-smoked fish and seafood products (54 samples) obtained from the Czech market. PAHs were detected in all of the studied samples, and at least one of the target halogenated persistent organic pollutants was present above the LOQ in 85% of the samples. The levels of PAHs, PCBs, organochlorine pesticides (mainly DDTs) and polybrominated diphenyl ethers found in the canned products varied in the range of 1.4-116 µg kg(-1), 0.6-59.6 µg kg(-1), 0.6-82.7 µg kg(-1) and 0.1-2.1 µg kg(-1) can content, respectively. Smoked sprats were the most contaminated fish product (n = 12) in which the highest levels of both PAHs and persistent organic pollutants were found. In 67% of the samples of smoked sprats in oil, the level of benzo[a]pyrene exceeded the maximum level of 5 µg kg(-1) established for smoked fish by European Union legislation. The distribution of target analytes between oil and fish fractions was also assessed. Significantly higher levels of PAHs were measured in the oil fraction.