Evaluation of Effective and Safe Extraction Method for Analysis of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Kolanuts from Côte d’Ivoire

Aims: The current study targets the achievement of a reliable process for the determination of PAH contents in kola nuts for better appreciation of the risks incurred from the consumption of such food products.

Study Design: Kolanuts collected from two big storage centers were analyzed after the validation of the proposed analytical method.

Place and Duration of Study: Central Laboratory for Food Hygiene and Agro-Industry, LANADA in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, running 2018.

Methodology: Two references were used for the validation of the analytical method, namely the French standard NF V 03-110 and the ISO directive ISO/DIS/15753 applicable in Liquid Chromatography. The PAH contents of some samples collected from different stores were then determined.

Results: From the data, a significant regression chart was recorded for the PAH detection graphs. All the analysis exhibited good linearity with significant correlation coefficients (R²˃ 0.99). The relative standard deviations of the repeatability and reproducibility assays are below 3%, whereas standard additions of PAH are fully recovered, with percentages close to 100%.

Conclusion: Using this analytical method, kola nuts contamination by PAH have been determined with satisfactory.This analytical method could help in ensuring effective sanitary control at different critical points of kola nut distribution channel for promoting a good management of the toxicity concerns in such products.