Development of a simple method for the quantitative determination of fatty acids in milk with special emphasis on long-chain fatty acids

A new and simple method was developed for the extraction and derivatization of fatty acid (FA) in milk. Lipid extraction of milk was carried out in H2SO4/methanol. Methylation was performed for 2 h at 60 degrees C, and FA methyl esters were recovered for chromatographic analysis by the addition of hexane. The method parameters were optimized and the simple method was compared to the official reference procedure for the extraction and methylation of FAs in milk samples. For most of the 24 FAs determined, similar or significantly higher recoveries were obtained by the simple method than by the conventional method. The simple method allows processing a high number of samples, at the same time, minimizing the sample manipulation and, consequently, the sample loss and contamination. In conclusion, the proposed method is simple, rapid, low cost, and achieves good results.