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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 #430862
Research Project: Technology Development, Evaluation and Validation for the Detection and Characterization of Chemical Contaminants in Foods

Location: Microbial and Chemical Food Safety

Title: Analysis of ultra-short per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in fruits and vegetables

Author
item Sapozhnikova, Yelena

Submitted to: Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/12/2026
Publication Date: 5/19/2026
Citation: Sapozhnikova, Y.V. 2026. Analysis of ultra-short per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in fruits and vegetables. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jafc.6c00469.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jafc.6c00469

Interpretive Summary: Food contamination with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) is a growing concern. Recently, short and ultrashort PFAS, i.e. organofluorine chemicals containing 1-4 carbons, have attracted scientific attention due to their high persistence and mobility. However, existing information on ultra-short PFAS levels in food is lacking. To address this, we have developed and validated a simple, fast and efficient method to test seven ultra-short PFAS in fruits and vegetables. The validated method was applied to test 103 samples of fruits and vegetables from the USA. Trifluoroacetic acid (TFA, with carbon length 2), was found in all samples in concentrations ranging from 1 to 625 ng/g. TFA calculated daily intake values were below the acceptable daily intake set up by the European Food Safety Authority. To our knowledge, this is the first report of TFA in fruits and vegetables in the U.S.

Technical Abstract: Short and ultra-short per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), including trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), are posing a growing concern due to their high persistence, mobility and increasing levels in the environment. In this study, a new method for analysis of seven short and ultra-short PFAS in fruits and vegetables was developed and validated for perfluoropropanoic acid (PFPrA, C3), trifluoroacetic acid (TFA, C2), trifluoromethanesulfonic acid (TFMS, C1), perfluoro-1-butanesulfonate (PFBS, C4), perfluoro-n-butanoic acid (PFBA, C4), perfluoropropanesulfonic acid (PFPrS, C3), and perfluoroethane sulfonic acid (PFEtS, C2). The method was based on methanolic extraction and instrumental analysis with liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) using polar reverse-phase LC column. The method was validated at three spiking levels with five replicates per level. Recoveries of PFAS with matched isotopically labeled internal standards were 70-107% with relative standard deviations (RSDs) = 15%. The validated method was applied to test 103 samples of fruits and vegetables from the USA. TFA was the only PFAS found in all samples with concentrations ranging from 1 to 625 ng/g. Calculated daily intakes of TFA were below the acceptable daily intake value of 0.05 mg/kg set up by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). To our knowledge, this is the first report of TFA in fruits and vegetables in the U.S.