POLYCYCLIC AROMATIC-HYDROCARBONS IN SMOKED FOOD-PRODUCTS AND COMMERCIAL LIQUID SMOKE FLAVORINGS

Smoked foods including turkey, pork, chicken, beef and fish products w ere screened for the presence of carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic pol ycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Eighteen commercial liquid smoke flavourings and seasonings were also analysed. Total PAH concentratio ns in smoked meat products ranged from 2.6 mug/kg in a cooked ham samp le to 29.8 mug/kg in grilled pork chops, while those in fish products ranged from 9.3 mug/kg in smoked shrimp to 86.6 mug/kg in smoked salmo n. Total concentrations of the carcinogenic PAHs (benzo [a] anthracene , benzo[b]fluoranthene, benzo [a]pyrene, dibenzo[a,h]anthracene, and i ndeno[1,2,3-c,d]pyrene) ranged from non-detectable in several meat pro ducts to 7.4 mug/kg in grilled pork chops, and from 0.2 mug/kg in trou t to 16.0 mug/kg in salmon. In liquid smoke flavourings and seasonings , total PAH concentrations ranged from 6.3 to 43.7 mug/kg, with the ca rcinogenic PAHs ranging from 0.3 to 10.2 mug/kg.