QuEChERS Kits

QuEChERS is an acronym for Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged and Safe which exactly explains its purpose. The kit makes the process of detecting pesticides in food samples easier and faster. It has become a common knowledge that pesticides influence the health of people. Different regulations all over the world make it important for the food industry to detect the different pesticides used on their import products. Therefore the QuEChERS kit was developed in 2003 and have become more important ever since.

QuEChERS Bufferd Extraction Kits
EN 15562 Method Buffered Extraction Kit 4 g MgSO₄, 1 g NaCl, 1 g NaCitrate 0.5 g diSodium Citrate Sesquihydrate P/No: 8010-1001	AOAC 2007.01 Method Buffered Extraction Kit 6 g MgSO₄, 1.5 g NaCitrate P/No: 8010-1002


Matter removed from sample	Examples	EN 15562 Method	AOAC 2007.01 Method
General purpose		25 mg PSA 150 mg MgSO₄ 2 ml - 100/box P/No: 8010-1003	50 mg PSA 150 mg MgSO₄ 2 ml - 100/box P/No: 8010-1005
- Polar Organic Acids - Some Sugars - Some Lipids	● Apple ● Peach ● Brocolli ● Fresh Peas	25 mg PSA 150 mg MgSO₄ 2 ml - 100/box P/No: 8010-1003	50 mg PSA 150 mg MgSO₄ 2 ml - 100/box P/No: 8010-1005
- Polar Organic Acids - Some Sugars - Some Lipids	● Apple ● Peach ● Brocolli ● Fresh Peas	150 mg PSA 900 mg MgSO₄ 15 ml - 50/box P/No: 8010-1004	400 mg PSA 1200 mg MgSO₄ 15 ml - 50/box P/No: 8010-1006
Fruits and vegetables with fat and waxes		25 mg PSA, 25 mg C18 150 mg MgSO₄ 2 ml - 100/box P/No: 8010-1007	50 mg PSA, 50 mg C18 150 mg MgSO₄ 2 ml - 100/box P/No: 8010-1009
- Polar Organic Acids - Some Sugars - Lipids - Sterols	● Oranges ● Lemons ● Animal Sourced ● Cerials
	● Oranges ● Lemons ● Animal Sourced ● Cerials	150 mg PSA, 150 mg C18 900 mg MgSO₄ 15 ml - 50/box P/No: 8010-1008	400 mg PSA, 400 mg C18 1200 mg MgSO₄ 15 ml - 50/box P/No: 8010-1010
Pigmented fruits and vegetables¹		25 mg PSA, 2.5 mg GCB 150 mg MgSO₄ 2 ml - 100/box P/No: 8010-1011	50 mg PSA, 50 mg GCB 150 mg MgSO₄ 2 ml - 100/box P/No: 8010-1013
- Polar Organic Acids - Some Sugars - Some Lipids - Carotinoides and Chlorophyll	● Zucchini ● Strawberry ● Dried Peas ● Tomatoes
	● Zucchini ● Strawberry ● Dried Peas ● Tomatoes	150 mg PSA, 15 mg GCB 900 mg MgSO₄ 15 ml - 50/box P/No: 8010-1012	400 mg PSA, 400 mg GCB 1200 mg MgSO₄ 15 ml - 50/box P/No: 8010-1014
Highly pigmented fruits and vegetables¹		25 mg PSA, 7.5 mg GCB 150 mg MgSO₄ 2 ml - 100/box P/No: 8010-1015
- Polar Organic Acids - Some Sugars - Some Lipids - Carotinoides and Chlorophyll	● Zucchini ● Strawberry ● Dried Peas ● Tomatoes
	● Zucchini ● Strawberry ● Dried Peas ● Tomatoes	150 mg PSA, 45 mg GCB 900 mg MgSO₄ 15 ml - 50/box P/No: 8010-1016
Fruits and vegetables with pigments and fats¹			50 mg PSA, 50 mg C18 50 mg GCB, 150 mg MgSO₄ 2 ml - 100/box P/No: 8010-1015
- Polar Organic Acids - Some Sugars - Some Lipids - Carotinoides and Chlorophyll	● Dairy Products ● Curry Spices ● Baby Food
	● Dairy Products ● Curry Spices ● Baby Food		400 mg PSA, 400 mg C18 400 mg GCB, 1200 mg MgSO₄ 15 ml - 50/box P/No: 8010-1018
Other food methods			25 mg C18 150 mg MgSO₄ 2 ml - 100/box P/No: 8010-1019
- Fats - Lipids - Proteins	● Olive Oil ● Citrus Oil ● Liver		25 mg C18 150 mg MgSO₄ 2 ml - 100/box P/No: 8010-1019
- Fats - Lipids - Proteins	● Olive Oil ● Citrus Oil ● Liver		150 mg C18 900 mg MgSO₄ 15 ml - 50/box P/No: 8010-1020
All food types			50 mg PSA, 50 mg C18 7.5 mg GCB, 150 mg MgSO₄ 2 ml - 100/box P/No: 8010-1021
- All matrix interfering materials
- All matrix interfering materials			400 mg PSA, 400 mg C18 45 mg GCB, 1200 mg MgSO₄ 15 ml - 50/box P/No: 8010-1022

¹ Not for use with planar pesticides

QuEChERS Related Methods:
EN 15662 Method Foods of plant origin - Determination of pesticide residues using GC-MS and/or LC-MS/MS following acetonitrile extraction/partitioning and clean-up by dispersive SPE - QuEChERS-method.
AOAC Method 2007.01 Pesticide Residues in Foods by Acetonitrile Extraction and Partitioning with Magnesium Sulfate.

How do they work?
The functionality of the QuEChERS kit is to extract any interfering matrices from the sample. The first step (explained on the next page) transfers the pesticides from the water to the added acetonitrile phase by applying MgSO₄. Lipids, sugars and pigments are the most important interfering matrices. The second step gets rid of these. Again MgSO₄ is added to separate any water. PrimarySecondaryAmine removes fatty acids and sugars, GraphiteCarbonBlack removes pigments and sterols. C18 makes sure that the pesticides do not dissolve in the lipid layer that arises in fat fruits and vegetables (sample > 1% fat). The extraction can be done after homogenizing 10 grams of the sample. When working with dried fruits, add some water before homogenizing. Apply the sample to the provided 50 mL test tubes for the first step. Starting the second step can be done by applying the aliquot supernatant to the provided 2 mL or 15 mL centrifuge tubes.

What QuEChERS kit to use?
On the next page one can find the Buffered Extraction Kits. Pay attention to choosing the correct one for the international market you're producing for (either EU or USA). On the back of this folder a list of QuEChERS kits can be found with a description on what fruits and vegetables they should be used with. Again observe the EU and USA method being displayed. Using the wrong QuEChERS kit can lead to a contaminated chromatogram as well as a contaminated column. Make sure you do know what matrices inside the fruits you are dealing with.

More information about QuEChERS.