Occurrence of bound 3-monochloropropan-1,2-diol content in commonly consumed foods in Hong Kong analysed by enzymatic hydrolysis and GC-MS detection

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine the level of bound 3-monochloropropan-1,2-diol in foodstuffs commonly consumed in Hong Kong, China, by an enzymatic hydrolysis indirect method which proved to be free from interferences. A total of 290 samples were picked up randomly from the local market and analysed. About 73% of these samples were found to contain detectable amounts of bound 3-MCPD. Amongst the 73 food items, bound 3-MCPD was not detected in 13 food items, including extra virgin olive oil, beef ball/salami, beef flank, ham/Chinese ham, nuts, seeds, soy sauce, oyster sauce, butter, yoghurt, cream, cheese and milk. For those found to contain detectable bound 3-MCPD, the content ranged up to 2500 µg kg⁻¹. The highest mean bound 3-MCPD content among the 14 food groups was in biscuits (440 [50–860] µg kg⁻¹), followed by fats and oils (390 [n.d.–2500] µg kg⁻¹), snacks (270 [9–1000] µg kg⁻¹), and Chinese pastry (270 [n.d.–1200] µg kg⁻¹). Among the samples, the highest bound 3-MCPD content was in a grape seed oil (2500 µg kg⁻¹), followed by a walnut flaky pastry (1200 µg kg⁻¹) and a grilled corn (1000 µg kg⁻¹). Basically, the results of this study agreed well with other published results in peer-reviewed journals, except for cheese, cream, ham, nuts and seeds.

Keywords:

• bound 3-monochloropropan-1,2-diol
• occurrence
• enzymatic hydrolysis
• Hong Kong