(Natural) deep eutectic solvents in food safety: Innovations in sample preparation

Deep eutectic solvents (DES) and natural deep eutectic solvents (NADES) have emerged as sustainable and efficient alternatives to conventional organic solvents in food safety analysis. These green solvents align with the principles of green analytical chemistry (GAC) by offering biodegradability, low toxicity, and high tunability for different analytical applications. This review critically explores the role of (NA)DES in sample preparation for detecting contaminants in food matrices, highlighting their effectiveness in extracting pesticides, mycotoxins, pharmaceuticals, plastic additives, food additives, and heavy metals. It encompasses diverse sample preparation techniques and food matrices, covering literature published from 2020 to the present. A detailed discussion is provided on the compositions of (NA)DES and their tailor-made capabilities for specific food safety applications. Their integration with advanced extraction techniques such as dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (DLLME), solid-phase microextraction (SPME), and ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) is provided. Additionally, the potential of magnetic and ternary DES is explored, along with other novel DES variants. While the high viscosity of some eutectic mixtures remains a challenge, innovative sample treatment strategies successfully mitigate these limitations, enhancing extraction efficiency and preconcentration capabilities across a wide range of complex food matrices.