Evaluation of mepiquat in malted barley and beer using LC-MS/MS

Abstract

Following recent studies that showed that the agrochemical mepiquat (1,1-dimethylpiperidinium) forms during the roasting of coffee beans and barley, this work investigates the presence of mepiquat in malted barley and commercially available beers. Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry was used to develop a sensitive and precise analytical method, with detection limits of 0.031 ng/g in malted barley and 0.014 ng/g in beer. Mepiquat was detected in nine out of 10 malted barley samples, with all results under the Canadian maximum residue limit (100 ng/g). The data suggest a relationship between perceived malted barley colour and mepiquat concentration. The concentration of mepiquat in the beers analysed was also below the maximum residue limits in Canada (100 ng/g) and in the EU (600 ng/g), suggesting that mepiquat is not a regulatory concern in finished beers.

Mepiquat: A Process-Induced Byproduct in Roasted Cereal-Based Foodstuffs

“…Indeed, mepiquat was not detected in whiskey or bread, but was found in some beer samples (10 of 11 samples) (Table ). Recently, mepiquat was reported in beers at levels up to 0.016 μg/kg . Higher amounts of mepiquat were found in samples that are processed at higher temperatures than beer, whiskey, and bread.…”

“…Recently, mepiquat was reported in beers at levels up to 0.016 μg/kg. 29 Higher amounts of mepiquat were found in samples that are processed at higher temperatures than beer, whiskey, and bread. In mugicha samples, for example, the compound was measured in the range of 42−168 μg/kg.…”

Comparative analysis of mycotoxin, pesticide, and elemental content of Canarian craft and Spanish mainstream beers

“…The origin of Mepiquat (1,1-dimethylpiperidinium) can be traced back as a residue from its application as a stem-stabilizing agrochemical in cereal crops, and also from its formation during the process of barley malting [64] . Mepiquat correlates with barley and beer colour, and has been recently found in 9 out of 10 commercial beers analysed in Canada [44] . Nonetheless, the levels found in our study are well below the European MRL and are not a regulatory concern in commercially available beers (See Fig.…”

Heat‐induced formation of N,N‐dimethylpiperidinium (mepiquat) in Arabica and Robusta coffee

“…The highest mepiquat content detected in Indonesia Wahana during dark roasting was 1020 µg/kg. Noestheden (2015) detected the mepiquat in malted barley (0.031 ng/g) and beer (0.014 ng/g), suggesting that darker samples contained higher amounts of mepiquat. This conclusion is consistent with our present findings.…”

“…HPLC‐MS/MS was used to detect mepiquat and its related compounds (Bauer, Luetjohann, Rohn, Kuballa, & Jantzen, 2018; Danezis, Anagnostopoulos, Liapis, & Koupparis, 2016; Ekielski, Mishra, & Zelazinski, 2018; Noestheden, 2015; Yuan, Tarres, Bessaire, Rademacher et al., 2017). All measurements were performed by an Alliance 2695 Separation Module (Waters, Milford, MA, USA) coupled to a TQ detector with MassLynx software 4.1.…”