By the CHRONECT Workstation MCPD

Introduction

3-Monochloropropane-1,2-diol (3-MCPD), 2-monochloropropane-1,3-diol (2-MCPD) and glycidol are known as contaminants in foodstuffs due to manufacturing. MCPD fatty acids may occur during the refinement process of oils and fats at high temperature or in the presence of chloride containing salts.

However, refinement is an essential chemical and physical process. Only through this kind of treatment with high temperature undesired odorants and flavoring substances as well as possible traces of toxic compounds (pesticides, heavy metals or mycotoxins) are eliminated. There is an increasing importance of the analysis of these contaminants due to their carcinogenicity.

Animal experiments revealed, that increased uptake of free 3-MCPD is increasing the risk of cancer. In March 2016 the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) declared a reduced value for the tolerable daily uptake of 0.8 μg/kg body weight.

Nowadays, there are numerous methods for the determination of MCPD esters. They can be divided into two groups: the direct determination using LC-MS/MS or the indirect analytics by GC-MS.

The direct analysis is more time-consuming because every single ester must be determined by LC/MS. The indirect method is more frequently used for routine applications. But still, manual determination is linked to a high expenditure of time. Axel Semrau® therefore has automated and optimized the current methods.

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