Chapter 7 - Application of HRMS in Pesticide Residue Analysis in Food From Animal Origin

Abstract

Despite that pesticide residue analysis has been mainly focusing on fruits and vegetables, the presence of toxic substances in food from animal origin is a main concern for consumers. In the last few years, generic methods based on liquid chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry have been developed for the simultaneous determination of a wide scope of substances, including pesticides, in meat, honey, milk, egg, and related matrices. This chapter describes the instrumental requirements needed for a reliable determination of pesticide residues in these complex matrices, as well as the main characteristics of the proposed methods (extraction and chromatographic conditions). Moreover, a brief comparison with low-resolution mass spectrometry methods has been performed, highlighting the main differences between both approaches. Finally, a conclusion section has been included to set future trends in this field.