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8333816 
Journal Article 
Carotenoids and retinoids in finnish foods: Ready-to-eat foods 
Heinonen, M; Ollilainen, V; Linkola, E; Varo, P; Koivistoinen, P 
1988 
Yes 
Journal of Food Composition and Analysis
ISSN: 0889-1575
EISSN: 1096-0481 
1 
3 
221-230 
English 
The carotenoid and retinoid compositions of 14 ready-to-eat food items commonly consumed in Finland were analyzed using a high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method. The sampling system was designed to produce composite samples of these food items sold by the four major wholesale food chains in Finland. After a room temperature saponification the samples were extracted with a mixture of n-hexane and diethyl ether (70:30). The separation of β- and α-carotene and lycopene was obtained by reversed-phase chromatography. Lutein and zeaxanthin were not separated from each other. All-trans-retinol and its cis-isomers were determined using a normal-phase column. The recovery of all-trans-retinol and β-carotene was 94 and 99%, respectively. All ready-to-eat foods analyzed contained β-carotene, lutein, and all-trans-retinol (excluding rose-hip puree). High amounts of β-carotene were present in vegetable steak (20 μg/g) and liver-vegetable stew (18 μg/g). α-Carotene was found in vegetable steak (4.6 μg/g), liver-vegetable stew (3.7 μg/g), and veal-vegetable stew (1.7 μg/g). The two latter ready-to-eat foods, including rose-hip puree, were baby foods. The lutein content of green pea soup was the highest (3.7 μg/g), whereas lycopene was the main carotenoid in hamburger, pizza, and rose-hip puree. All-trans-retinol concentrations in ready-to-eat foods containing liver were high (17-38 μg/g) and thus these items also contributed significantly to the vitamin A activity, expressed as retinol equivalents. © 1988.