Multi-element and multi-isotope-ratio analysis to determine the geographical origin of foods in the European Union

Determination of the geographical origin of food and beverages has been a growing issue over the past decade for all countries around the world, mostly because of the concern of consumers about the authenticity of the food that they eat. An increasing number of research articles in the past five years have investigated the elemental composition and the isotope ratios as indicators to determine the origin of food and beverages. The indicators commonly used are stable-isotope ratios of hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, carbon and sulfur, combined with isotope ratios of strontium and lead, and elemental concentrations.This article reviews the application of multi-element and multi-isotope methods and the statistical tools used to determine the geographical origin of food and beverages in the European Union from 2008 to early 2012. We review 48 papers, divided between different food commodities.

► Review covers 48 recent publications concerning analysis of EU foods and beverages. ► Analysis of wines, beverages, fruits, vegetables, dairy products, honey, edible oils. ► Trace & rare-earth elements measured by AAS, ICP-MS, ICP-AES, NAA and XRF. ► Isotope ratios of C, N, O, H, S, Sr and Pb measured by IRMS, TIMS and MC-ICP-MS.