Food Forensics Stable Isotopes as a Guide to Authenticity and Origin

Food forensics is a multi-disciplinary science involving advanced analytical techniques, plant and animal metabolism, and sophisticated data interpretation tools. This book explains how plants, and in turn animals eating those plants, assimilate stable isotopes and trace elements from their environments. It provides extensive reviews of the use of stable isotope and trace element measurements for the authentication of major food groups and how these can be used to detect fraudsters. The book emphasises the use of correct methods for sample preparation and measurement so that data can be compared to existing datasets, with a dedicated chapter discussing interpretations.

Isotope ratio measurements for food forensics. Sampling, sample preparation and analysis. Interpreting stable isotope ratios in plants and plant-based foods. Introduction to stable isotopes in food webs. Data analysis interpretation: Forensic applications and examples. Flesh Foods, or What can stable isotope analysis reveal about the meat you eat? Fruits and vegetables. Alcoholic Beverages I – Wine. Alcoholic Beverages II – Spirits, Beer, Sake and Cider. Stable isotope measurements and modeling to verify the authenticity of dairy products. Edible vegetal oils. Organic food authenticity. Odds and ends, or, All that’s left to print.

James F. Carter, Lesley A. Chesson