BOOK OF ABSTRACTS - 7th International Symposium on RECENT ADVANCES IN FOOD ANALYSIS (RAFA)

Significance of the Topic

In a rapidly evolving regulatory and technological environment, the 7th International Symposium on Recent Advances in Food Analysis brings together cutting-edge methodologies and interdisciplinary expertise to safeguard food safety, authenticity and quality.

Study Objectives and Overview

The Book of Abstracts documents contributions from leading academic, regulatory and industrial scientists. It is structured around four main components:

• Vendor-led seminars on emerging instrumentation and workflows
• Keynote and invited lectures covering policy, non-targeted screening, foodomics and advanced separation sciences
• Poster presentations on allergen detection, authenticity, contaminants, bioanalysis, bioactives and general food analysis
• Workshops and tutorials focusing on method development, data handling and quality management

Methodology and Instrumentation

The volume highlights a broad array of analytical platforms applied to real-world food matrices:

• Hyphenated mass spectrometry (LC–HRMS, GC–QToF, GC–Triple Quad) with ambient ionization and ion mobility
• Comprehensive chromatography (GC×GC, LC×LC) and supercritical fluid chromatography
• Vibrational spectroscopy (NIR, FT-IR, Raman), fluorescence and cavity ring-down
• Elemental and nanoparticle analysis by ICP–MS (including single-particle), AAS and TXRF
• Microfluidics, biosensors and aptamer/antibody-based bioassays
• High-resolution NMR, metabolic profiling and multivariate data analysis

Main Results and Discussion

Key themes emerging from the contributions include:

1. Growing adoption of non-targeted, high-resolution mass spectrometry workflows for comprehensive contaminant and authenticity screening
2. Integration of orthogonal separations and ion mobility to resolve complex mixtures and masked analytes
3. Advanced sample preparation and clean-up strategies (QuEChERS, on-line SPE, microextraction) to lower detection limits and matrix effects
4. Application of chemometric and multivariate tools for pattern recognition in authenticity, origin tracing and exposure assessment
5. Development of rapid, point-of-need sensors and portable instruments for real-time monitoring

Benefits and Practical Applications

By providing a comprehensive snapshot of emerging methodologies, the symposium proceedings enable laboratories and regulatory agencies to:

• Implement faster, more sensitive multi-residue and non-targeted screens
• Enhance confidence in food origin, adulteration detection and fraud prevention
• Optimize workflows for routine QA/QC in industrial and government settings
• Adopt novel sensors and bioassays for on-site pathogen and toxin detection

Future Trends and Opportunities

Contributors forecast ongoing innovation in:

• Combining multi-omic data streams (proteomics, metabolomics, lipidomics) with bioinformatics for holistic foodomics
• Ambient and direct-analysis mass spectrometry imaging to map contaminants in situ
• Microfluidic lab-on-a-chip systems for automated sample prep and multiplexed detection
• Machine-learning integration to automate data processing and feature extraction
• Standardization of non-targeted workflows and validation criteria for regulatory acceptance

Conclusion

The Book of Abstracts from the 7th International Symposium on Recent Advances in Food Analysis captures the latest breakthroughs in analytical chemistry applied to food. It underscores the shift towards holistic, high-throughput, and data-rich strategies that will define the next generation of food safety, authenticity and quality control.

Reference

Pulkrabová J., Tomaniová M., Nielen M., Hajšlová J. (Eds.). Book of Abstracts, 7th International Symposium on Recent Advances in Food Analysis, November 3–6, 2015, Prague, Czech Republic. UCT Prague Press. ISBN 978-80-7080-934-1.