Identification and Removal of Polysorbate-false-positive Substances in Pork Meat

Abstract

Polysorbate, a food additive in processed foods, is detected and quantified by TLC and absorption spectrophotometry according to the official method. We detected false-positive substances in pork meat free from polysorbate and identified them as phosphatidylcholines of various fatty acid chain lengths after TLC fractionation and LC/MS analysis. The use of a solid phase extraction column to absorb phospholipids enables the removal of polysorbate-false-positive substances in pork meat. The added purification procedure has no effect on the sensitivity of detection and quantification of polysorbate added to pork meat.