Determination of Carrageenan in Livestock and Poultry Meat by Ultrahigh-Performance Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) has become the main method for the detection and analysis of food additives because of its good separation, high selectivity, and high sensitivity. The aim of this study was to establish an UHPLC-MS/MS method that can quickly and accurately measure the content of carrageenan in livestock and poultry meat. Chromatographic separation was performed on an ACQUITY UPLC BEH HILIC C18 column (2.1 mm x 50 mm, 1.7 mu m) using a gradient elution with methanol and 0.1% (v/v) formic acid in water as a mobile phase. The quantitative analysis was executed using a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer in which electrospray ionization, multiple reaction monitoring, and negative mode were operated. The retention time was about 1.3 min for carrageenan. The carrageenan content showed a good linear relationship from 0.05 to 1.00 g/kg. The limit of detection (LOD) was 0.06 g/kg, and the limit of quantification (LOQ) was 0.18 g/kg. The standards were spiked at three levels (low, medium, and high) and were analyzed in six replicates. The recovery values of carrageenan in pork, beef, lamb, chicken, and duck meat were 82.06-111.55%, 85.43-112.50%, 89.55-116.00%, 83.80-102.15%, and 82.41-110.90%, respectively. The relative standard deviations (RSDs) were all lower than 7.51%. The developed method shows a high recovery rate and good precision and can be used for the rapid detection of carrageenan in livestock and poultry meat.

Automated summary

The study developed a rapid and accurate method for measuring carrageenan content in livestock and poultry meat using UHPLC-MS/MS. By employing a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer and gradient elution on a chromatographic column, successful separation and quantification of carrageenan was achieved.