A Coating Change That Invalidates a Food Contact Declaration
A raw material shift in barrier coatings alters chemical migration profiles, instantly invalidating food contact declarations and risking complete job quarantine.
LC MS Screening
Chemical Analysis
A high-performance analytical technique combines liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry to identify and quantify chemical compounds in a sample. This method separates complex mixtures of chemicals before ionizing and detecting them based on their mass-to-charge ratio. In the testing of paperboard materials, lc ms screening allows for the detection of non-volatile and polar compounds that might be missed by other methods.
Contaminant Identification
In the safety evaluation of paperboard packaging, lc ms screening identifies non-intentionally added substances that may migrate into food. These chemicals often originate from recycled pulp, printing inks, or processing aids used in the mill. The screening can detect trace amounts of plasticizers, photoinitiators, and adhesive components, ensuring that even minor impurities are recognized before they cause a safety issue.
Compliance Validation
Food brands utilize the results of this testing to confirm that no unapproved or harmful substances are present in the packaging board. The analysis provides a profile of all extractable substances, which is compared against regulatory lists of allowed ingredients. This thorough characterization helps mills and converters optimize their processes and choose raw materials that guarantee the chemical safety of the final package.
It is particularly valuable for recycled boards, where the feedstocks can vary between batches, requiring continuous verification to maintain a consistent food-grade quality standard across different production periods.