Trace level determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in raw and processed meat and fish products from European markets by GC-MS

Abstract

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are a group of highly carcinogenic and mutagenic compounds, sixteen of them have been deemed as priority pollutants by the regulation authorities. A method for determination of the 16 EPA's priority PAHs in a variety of meat and fish products is reported here. The method uses ultrasound assisted extraction and a semi-automated closed solid phase system to cleanup sample extracts and preconcentrate the target compounds, after which the extracts are analyzed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. The proposed method was validated with quite good analytical results including low limits of detection (3–70 ng/kg), and good accuracy (recoveries of 85–105%) and relative standard deviations below 7.5%. A total of 32 meat and fish samples from European markets were analyzed, 30 of which contained the target PAHs at levels from 11 to 6900 ng/kg. Naphthalene, acenaphthene, fluoranthene and pyrene are the analytes that have been found at the highest concentration in meat and fish samples. Some PAHs were present at especially high concentrations in smoked, roasted and grilled meat and fish compared to raw samples.