A Method for Determining PFAS in Bovine Meat and Tuna Fish by UHPLC-HRMS Orbitrap

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS) can be present in foodstuff, including preserved foods like canned meats, due to their ubiquity and difficult degradation.

In this work, an analytical method for the quantification of 20 PFAS in canned bovine meat and tuna fish in olive oil was developed, optimized and validated. The analytical approach was based on a QuEChERS extraction, purification with dSPE followed by Solid Phase Extraction (SPE) protocol with subsequent quantification of the extracted analytes by isotope dilution using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry with an Orbitrap analyzer (UHPLC-HRMS). The validation procedure allowed to ascertaining good analytical performances in terms of sensitivity, accuracy and robustness. The values obtained for recovery percentages (range: 80%–120%) were in accordance with the guidelines used for the determination of PFAS in food, LOQs achieved were low enough to ensure compliance with Commission Regulation (EU) 2022/2388 amending Regulation (EC) 1881/2006 as regards maximum levels of perfluoroalkyl substances in certain foodstuffs which was repealed very recently by the Commission Regulation (EU) 2023/915. With the developed method 10 samples from the local markets (n. five canned beef and n. five tuna in olive oil) were analyzed.