Abstract

A fluorine content analysis method for krill oils, which is a representative oil formulation in foods, was developed in compliance with the Korea Food and Drug Ministry's "Guidelines for Validation of Testing Methods Related to Food". Using this method for krill oils, the presence of impurities was evaluated via combustion-ion chromatography (C-IC). A review of published technical data on fluorine in krill oils showed that while the traditional wet potentiometric method was typically used, it was not reliable. Moreover, there was no food testing/analysis laboratory in Korea to perform a fluorine test analysis on such an oil matrix. Therefore, we identified halogen (fluorine) tests, developed to national and international standards, and developed a test method suitable for krill oils by selecting a C-IC method that is sufficiently applicable to the oil matrix. Based on the characteristics of the oil matrix, the optimal test method was established through various experiments by reviewing the concerns related to loss and interference in the preparation and introduction of samples. The fluorine content test was carried out on 11 krill oil products that were purchased online. Most products (with the exception of only one) were found to contain less than the reporting limit obtained by the test method. Furthermore, after additional testing, a high fluorine content of approximately 2,000 ~ 3,000 mg/kg was detected on the krill surface, although the concentration varied depending on the area of the krill. A comparison with samples from two ISO/IEC 17025 testing laboratories confirmed that there was no significant difference in the statistical analysis results obtained by ANOVA among the three laboratories. A testing guide for fluorine content analysis was completed.