Hidden risk of the presence of weed species: Tropane alkaliods in food and cereals

Abstract

This paper evaluates the occurrence of the TAs in 71 food products samples. The analysis comprised the following samples: 18 corn puffs, 12 popcorn, 16 corn and 25 corn grits samples, obtained from the shops in Belgrade and Novi Sad during 2019. and 2020. The overall number of the samples with the atropine and scopolamine detections below the LOQ was 61,97%. The percentage of the detection of the tropane alkaloids above the limit of quantification, which may have a negative effect on the health of humans and animals, was 29,57%. The atropine and scopolamine detections are equal in the number of corn puffs, popcorn and corn samples, while 7 samples of corn grits contained the atropine, and 6 of them contained the scopolamine. The highest mean concentrations of the atropine and scopolamine were detected in corn grits, followed by popcorn, then in the corn, while the lowest were in the corn puffs.