Comparison between capillary electrophoresis and high performance liquid chromatography for the study of the occurrence of patulin in apple juice intended for infants

Apple juice samples intended for infants purchased in Navarra (Spain) have been analyzed for PAT occurrence. Two capillary electrophoresis methods, based on a MEKC and a CEC system, and an HPLC method were evaluated for the aforementioned study. The CEC system gave less satisfying separations and several practical problems, so samples have been analyzed by MEKC and HPLC. Both methods have been comparable in terms of recovery, precision, limits of detection, volume of organic solvents used and adequate selectivity with regard to PAT and HMF. The analysis time in HPLC has been slightly lower than in the MEKC methodology. The PAT levels obtained in apple juice by both validated methods showed a strong correlation (p < 0.001). Therefore, both methodologies are useful for the accurate quantification of patulin in this matrix. T levels obtained in the 20 infant apple juices samples were in a range between <LOD and 29.6 μg L−1, with a mean concentration of 8.0 μg L−1 which implies a dietary intake estimation of 104 ng kg−1 b.w. day−1 considering a body weight of 10 kg and an apple juice consumption of 130 mL day−1, 26% of the PMTDI recommended by JECFA.