New Analytical Strategies for the Determination of Food Quality and Safety by Automated Sample Preparation Coupled with 1D and 2D GC–MS

The global scientific community faces ever increasing demands for faster, more accurate and sensitive analytical testing methods for food authenticity, quality and safety. In this e-seminar industry experts will discuss the common problems associated with sample preparation for a variety of food applications. They will discuss how these have been overcome using a powerful combination of sample extraction and enrichment, with both 1D and 2D GC coupled with mass spectrometry.

By attending this eSeminar you will learn:

• how automated sample extraction and enrichment (thermal desorption, SPME and high-capacity sorptive extraction), when coupled with either GC or GC×GC and TOF MS, can vastly improve sensitivity of VOC analysis in food quality and safety work
• how these techniques are being routinely employed in food authenticity studies
• how these VOC studies are being used to reduce food deterioration and waste.

The presentations include:

1. Using SPME with Gas Chromatography for The Fingerprinting of Olive Oil Volatiles

This presentation describes a method that enhances the performance of headspace-SPME using a novel approach based on multi-cumulative trapping solid-phase micro extraction (SPME). The SPME extraction was performed using an automated multi-mode sample preparation system (Centri™) containing a sorbent based focusing trap to retain and preconcentrate analytes. The novel technique was applied to the analysis of olive oil aroma profile using a pattern recognition approach.

Presenter: Giorgia Purcaro (University of Liège, Belgium)

2. Detailed Chemical Fingerprinting of Tea by Comprehensive GCxGC–TOF MS with Tandem Ionisation

Comprehensive GC×GC-TOF MS is now considered the most informative approach for chemical characterization of complex food fractions. In this study we explore the primary metabolome of tea (Camellia sinensis L. Kuntze) to reveal compositional differences in farmer-processed green Pu’erh teas from Yunnan Province (China) and semi-oxidized Oolong teas from Fujian Province (China) as a function of extreme climate events (drought/heavy rains) and daily temperatures (low/high elevation). The benefits of adding extra-dimensions of information, by using simultaneous soft and hard (Tandem) ionisation TOF-MS to differentiate isomers, are discussed in terms of the fingerprinting process.

Presenter: Chiara Cordero (University of Turin, Italy)

GC×GC for The Enhanced Profiling of Fatty Acid Methyl Esters (FAME) of Avocado Fruits

The quality of food can be measured by understanding the volatiles or aroma compounds that encompass it. Here we present method development and validation of the analysis of volatiles and FAMEs using comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography (GC×GC) and advanced data mining software.

We will show how the flavour profile changes throughout the lifecycle of an avocado, due to a change in compound ratios. Furthermore, the changes in the FAME composition, with respect to ripening time and country of origin, will also be discussed.

Presenter: Taylor Hayward (Apeel Sciences, Goleta, California, USA)