In response to lower regulatory limits worldwide, the AOAC Working Group on Heavy Metals in Food, co-chaired by Chris Smith, The Coca-Cola Co., and Stéphane Dubascoux, Nestlé, developed Standard Method Performance Requirements (SMPRs®) for determination of trace elemental contaminants in food and beverages. The SMPR was approved on March 11, 2024, by stakeholders interested in and affiliated with the AOAC working group and AOAC Metals Community, co-chaired by Kevin Kubachka, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and Eve Kroukamp, Standard BioTools.
Due to global changes in regulatory limits (decreasing LOQ and analytical range according to current legislation), stakeholders identified a need for updated standards and methods for heavy metals.
As recommended by the AOAC Working Group on Heavy Metals in Food, analytical methods are needed for determination of total acid extractable cadmium, arsenic, lead, and mercury in a variety of foods, beverages, baby food, infant formula, their respective ingredients, and natural colorants.
For the purposes of the SMPR, ‘total acid extractable’ is defined as elemental concentration that can be extracted under an acid digestion environment using a single acid or combination of acids such as HNO3, HCl plus H2O2. For food and beverage samples, the use of HF is not required in this definition of total acid extractable.
Inductively coupled plasma-based mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) instrumentation or alternative methodology that meets performance requirements is preferred.
The SMPR was posted on the AOAC website for a public comment period. All comments were reconciled by working group co-chairs and AOAC.
The SMPR will be published in the Official Methods of AnalysisSM compendium. AOAC will issue a call for methods and experts to review candidate methods against the SMPR.
Future opportunities may include standards development activities for additional elements of interest, such as antimony, barium, and chromium, which can also have adverse effects in high amounts or in particular species; contaminants in infant formula; thallium in food; and toxic elements in baby food.
For more information on AOAC activities for heavy metals in foods, visit the Heavy Metals page on the AOAC website.
