DETERMINATION OF THE AUTHENTICITY OF VANILLA EXTRACTS BY STABLE-ISOTOPE RATIO ANALYSIS AND COMPONENT ANALYSIS BY HPLC

The examination of vanilla extracts by stable isotope ratio analysis a nd chemical component analysis is described: Vanillin was extracted an d purified by semipreparative high-performance liquid chromatography ( HPLC), and the C-13/C-12 isotope ratio was determined by mass spectrom etry. The concentrations of the main flavoring components relative to vanillin were determined by HPLC. Authentic extracts, prepared in the laboratory from vanilla pods, as well as commercially available extrac ts were examined. The authenticity and the degree of adulteration in b lended samples were determined with both methods. The results are in g ood agreement.