Ring trial for Mustard ELISA kit

Monday, 09 May 2011 13:34

Mustard is one of the key allergens that must be labelled where it is added to foods sold in many parts of the world. A paper in the latest issue of the Journal of AOAC International reports results of a 12-laboratory ring trial using an ELISA kit developed to test for and quantify the presence of mustard in food products.

All participants in the inter-laboratory study received 15 food samples and two spiked samples, in addition to the Mustard ELISA kit, standard operational procedures and a protocol for recording test results. Eleven samples showed mustard protein content lower than that of the first standard (0.42 mg/kg). Four samples known to contain mustard returned results above the highest standard (12.5 mg/kg).

The limit of detection of the kit was calculated at 0.5mg mustard proteins/kg, and the limit of quantification was 1.8 mg mustard proteins/kg.

Reference: Cuhra et al. 2011. Journal of AOAC International. Vol 94(2) pp. 605-610.