Elemental and Isotopic Fingerprints of Potatoes

Nowadays, food traceability represents an important issue in the current context of trade agreements, which influence global food prices. Many consumers prefer to pay a higher price for a traditional cultivation regime of a certain food product that comes from a certain region, appreciating the tast...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Cezara Voica, Ioana Feher, Romulus Puscas, Andreea Maria Iordache, Gabriela Cristea
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-07-01
Series:Foods
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2304-8158/14/14/2440
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Nowadays, food traceability represents an important issue in the current context of trade agreements, which influence global food prices. Many consumers prefer to pay a higher price for a traditional cultivation regime of a certain food product that comes from a certain region, appreciating the taste of the respective foodstuff. The potato is now the world’s fourth most important food crop in terms of human consumption, after wheat, maize, and rice. In this context, 100 potato samples from the Romanian market were collected. While 68 samples came from Romania, the rest of the 32 were from abroad (Hungary, France, Greece, Italy, Germany, Egypt, and Poland). The countries selected for potato sample analysis are among the main exporters of potatoes to the Romanian market. The samples were investigated by their multi-elemental and isotopic (<sup>2</sup>H, <sup>18</sup>O and <sup>13</sup>C) fingerprints, using Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) and Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometry (IRMS). Then, to distinguish the geographical origin, the experimental results were statistically processed using linear discriminant analysis (LDA). The best markers that emphasize Romanian potatoes were identified to be δ<sup>13</sup>C<sub>bulk</sub>, δ<sup>2</sup>H<sub>water</sub>, and Sr.
ISSN:2304-8158