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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania » Eastern Regional Research Center » Microbial and Chemical Food Safety » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #393769
Research Project: Technology Development, Evaluation and Validation for the Detection and Characterization of Chemical Contaminants in Foods

Location: Microbial and Chemical Food Safety

Title: Non-targeted analysis with liquid chromatography - high resolution mass spectrometry for the identification of food packaging migrants

Author
item Sapozhnikova, Yelena
item NUNEZ, ALBERTO - Collaborator

Submitted to: Journal of Chromatography A
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/9/2022
Publication Date: 6/11/2022
Citation: Sapozhnikova, Y.V., Nunez, A. 2022. Non-targeted analysis with liquid chromatography - high resolution mass spectrometry for the identification of food packaging migrants. Journal of Chromatography A. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chroma.2022.463215.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chroma.2022.463215

Interpretive Summary: In this study we investigated chemicals migrating from paper-based food packaging, including pizza boxes, liners, butcher paper and egg containers collected around Philadelphia, PA. Migration tests were conducted using US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) protocols for 10 days. State of the art instrumentation with high resolution mass spectrometry was used for confident identification of the migrated chemicals. Overall, 153 migrants were identified, including common additives to food contact materials and chemicals used in commerce. Two chemicals of toxicological concern, bisphenol A (BPA) and bisphenol S (BPS) were identified and quantified, and their measured amounts were below the established regulatory levels, suggesting no risk to consumer's health. The generated information on the chemicals migrating from food packaging is important to gain understanding of their identity, presence and levels in food packaging, and to inform recommendations on future toxicological studies and risk assessment.

Technical Abstract: Potential contamination of food with chemicals migrating from food packaging is an important, yet under-investigated area of food safety. In this study, we examined chemicals migrating from common paper-based food packaging: pizza boxes and pizza box liners, butcher paper and liquid egg containers. Migration tests were conducted with a food simulant for 10 days, and migrated chemicals were identified with liquid chromatography (LC) - high resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) with mass error < 3 ppm. HRMS identification was based on spectra and/or structure matching against commercial databases (MzCloud, ChemSpider, and Extractable and Leachable high resolution accurate mass (HRAM) database). Following HRMS identification, orthogonal LC retention information was utilized to further refine the data and reduce false positive findings. A model for calculating retention times (tR) based on octanol-water partition coefficient (log Kow) values was evaluated and applied for HRMS data refining. Using this approach, 153 migrated chemicals were identified, of which five were further confirmed with reference analytical standards. Additionally, amounts of bisphenol A and bisphenol S, the chemicals of toxicological concerns, were measured at the levels below the established regulatory limits for migration, indicating no/low risk to consumer's health. This study demonstrated the utility of LC-HRMS for confident identification of food packaging migrants.