Direct determination of the total fat content of butter and edible oil emulsions - an international collaborative study

A standard operating procedure for the direct determination of fat in butte r and edible oil products involved the extraction of the fat from the sampl e, separation of the solvent-fat phase from the serum phase and transfer of the solvent-fat phase to a fat-collecting vessel. The solvent was removed by distillation or evaporation and the mass of extracted matter was: determ ined gravimetrically. This method was studied collaboratively involving 13 laboratories and eight samples to determine precision estimates. Estimates of repeatability and reproducibility were 0.23 g per 100 g and 0.45 g per 1 00 g, respectively. The method is recommended for adoption as an internatio nal reference method. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.