Oligosaccharides, and in particular raffinose and kestoses, are of great im
portance not only in the field of cane and beet processing but also in resp
ect of the analyses of a number of agricultural raw materials and trade pro
ducts. The authors judge it to be useful to have at one's disposal a simple
and reliable analytical technique to be used for the detection of oligosac
charides in different materials. Modern planar chromatography can be utiliz
ed, bearing in mind that HPTLC (high performance thin layer chromatography)
plates, Automated Multiple Development, completely automated elution syste
ms, sample positioning and spots detection apparatuses, are available. Deta
ils on the analytical methodology adopted for molasses and other sugar prod
ucts are presented and discussed also giving statistical data about its acc
uracy and precision. Some examples of practical application of the proposed
methodology are described. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reser
ved.