Mass Spectrometry of Proteins, Peptides and Small Molecules for Food Authentication – A Systematic Survey

Food authenticity is a highly relevant topic for the entire food supply chain from the raw material to the final product. Compliance with raw material specifications and food product related legal requirements (e.g. labelling and marketing) is also mandatory for guarantee food authentication. This is all the more correct if the food is subject to certain restrictions, for example, cultural or religious issues. In addition, some manipulations of food also involve health risks. Therefore, the assurance of food authenticity, with the active involvement of all parties involved in the supply chain, has a significant impact on the perception of general legal certainty. This review reports a systematic literature survey based on the topics food authenticity and mass spectrometry in combination with the food groups cereals, fruits, vegetables, mushrooms, beans, edible oils, spices, herbs, meat, seafood, milk, egg, honey and insects. Special attention was paid to the demands of the official food control authorities, concerning method development and validation aspects, as well as the improvement of data evaluation. The review shows a great need for fully validated, routine-capable and standardized methods as well as for the development of food data systems using artificial intelligence where reasonable to prevent food authenticity crises in future.

食品真实性（food authenticity）是覆盖从原料到最终产品的整条食品供应链的至关重要的议题。遵守原料规格标准及食品相关法律法规（如标签与营销规范）是保障食品真实性的强制性要求。当食品受到特定限制（如文化或宗教层面的限制）时，这一要求尤为关键。此外，部分食品的人为篡改行为还会带来健康风险。因此，在供应链各参与方的积极参与下保障食品真实性，对提升公众对法律确定性的认知具有显著意义。本综述围绕食品真实性与质谱（mass spectrometry）联用技术两大主题，针对谷物、水果、蔬菜、蘑菇、豆类、食用油、香辛料、药草、肉类、海鲜、乳类、蛋类、蜂蜜及昆虫类等食品品类开展了系统性文献调研。研究重点关注了官方食品监管机构对方法开发与验证、以及数据评估优化方面的诉求。综述结果显示，当前亟需开发经过全面验证、可用于常规检测且标准化的检测方法，同时也需要在合理场景下研发应用人工智能（artificial intelligence）的食品数据系统，以防范未来的食品真实性危机。