Food Testing
Food analysis according to your
requirements or international legislation
nuTIQ GmbH is offering in 39 specialized laboratories food testing of
With the risk based approach nuTIQ offers you recommendations on food testing scopes related to origin and product
Food Supply Chain
Quality - Safety - Authenticity
Companies that operate within the food supply chain have to have large resources available for quality management.
With nuTIQ as your partner in quality management you can reduce cost and manage the higher demands on food safety and authenticity.
Regulation for food testing regarding contaminants and residues are becoming more and more demanding and sophisticated. Several regions word wide are implementing their own framework for food safety. Maximum residue levels are nearly as volatile as commodity markets due to new scientific data or new demands regarding sustainability of environmental resources.
nuTIQ - Member of GBA Group
Your tool box - sampling, testing & more
The choice of the right tool is a daily challenge of risk assessment in the nutrition industry. With the best combination of traditional tools like certificates of food testing labs, independent sampling services and supplier audits, risk can be managed and reduced.
Organic and inorganic contaminants in food
According to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) contaminants are defined as follows:
“Contaminants are chemical substances that have not been intentionally added to food or feed. These substances may be present in food as a result of the various stages of its production, processing or transport. They also might result from environmental contamination. Contaminants may pose a risk to animal and human health.
The main EU legislation in this area is: The Regulation 315/93/EEC on procedures for contaminants in food & the Regulation 1881/2006 on maximum levels for certain contaminants
1.900 methods to find them all: contaminants not only include natural contamination like mycotoxins and alkaloids or environmental pollutants like dioxins, but also metals or processing contaminants like acrylamide or MCPD.
Learn more from our team of specialists in food testing and ensure quality and safety of your product and business.
Your Specialist for International Food Safety
Residues from plant protection agents
Pesticide residue resulting from the use of plant protection products on food or feed crops may pose a risk to public health. For this reason, a comprehensive legislative framework has been established in the European Union which defines rules for the approval of active substances used in plant protection products, the use of plant protection products and for pesticide residue in food.
Maximum residue levels (MRLs) are the upper levels of pesticide residues that are legally permissible in or on food or animal feed, based on good agricultural practice and the lowest consumer exposure necessary to protect vulnerable consumers. They are derived by a comprehensive assessment of the properties of the active substance and the intended use of the pesticide. These legal limits also apply to imported food.
There are more than 1.400 different chemicals registered worldwide for plant protection. With the modern approach of the QuEChers method one is able to detect around 700 to 800 different chemicals. Around 100 chemicals like acidic herbicides are detectable by specific group methods and around 50 plant protection agents by single methods, for example nicotine.
There is a broad knowledge required to decide which methods are relevant related to product or origin. GBA nuTIQ GmbH is offering an extended support for this.
Further information: All matters related to legal limits for pesticide residues in food and feed are covered by Regulation (EC) No 396/2005
Microbiological testing
Product recall is often caused by the contamination with pathogen bacteria, such as salmonella and listeria. The consequences for affected producers vary from monetary compensation to closing of production plants. To avoid these settings, a thorough microbiological monitoring of incoming goods, sanitation, personal hygiene and production processes is essential.
A microbiological testing plan based on your individual risk analysis is demanded by law (e.g. EU regulation 2073/2005) and has to be implemented. nuTIQ consultants will help you to develop an adequate plan for testing and to choose the right parameter.
Characterizing valuable ingredients
Food fraud, adulteration and tampering of food is more likely to happen than one would think. A comprehensive system to manage your supplier and the testing of authenticity helps to mitigate the food fraud risk.
The testing of authenticity is provided by our partners of the GBA Group food testing laboratories.