Determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in processed foods

In this study, the following concentrations of some PAHs (Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons) were investigated; [benzo(a) anthracene, chrysene, benzo(b) fluoranthene, benzo(k) fluoranthene, benzo(a) pyrene, dibenzo(a, h) anthracene, benzo(g,h,i) perylene, indeno(1,2,3-c,d) pyrene] in processed foods (n=165) and cooked meats (n=45) and established the analytical method by characteristics of processed foods. The methodology involved extraction (alkali digestion, liquid-liquid extraction, microwave extraction), clean-up on Sep-Pak Florisil Cartridges and determination by HPLC/FLD (High Performance Liquid Chromatography/Fluorescence Detector). The recovery of overall method for 8 PAHs spiked into these products ranged from 92 to 103%. The mean level of detected foods was found to be benzo(b) fluoranthene 0.9 mu g/kg in smoked salmon, benzo(b) fluoranthene 1.0 mu g/kg, benzo(k) fluoranthene 0.3 mu g/kg, benzo(a) pyrene 0.9 mu g/kg in dried banana, benzo(b) fluoranthene 0.2 mu g/kg, benzo(k) fluoranthene 0.1 mu g/kg, benzo(a) pyrene 0.2 mu g/kg in smoked chicken, benzo(b) fluoranthene 1.3 mu g/kg, benzo(k) fluoranthene 0.3 mu g/kg, benzo(a) pyrene 0.9 mu g/kg in charcoal grilled pork, respectively.