Study on the characteristics of sweetener reference material (aspartame, acesulfame potassium, sodium saccharin) in orange juice

To conduct the validity of test results, various measures such as proficiency testing, inter-laboratory comparisons, or the use of standard samples and quality control samples, etc. may be chosen. Participation in proficiency testing or inter-laboratory comparisons is sometimes not feasible for laboratories due to objective conditions such as funding sources, lack of suppliers, or absence of a suitable program for the sample matrix and criteria needed. Therefore, the use of standard samples or quality control samples is a good option. However, most standard samples are not readily available in Vietnam and often have to be imported, which is costly, and many specific types of samples are not yet produced. In this study, sweetener standards (aspartame, acesulfame potassium, sodium saccharin) in natural orange juice and flavored orange juice were created to investigate the characteristics of these two types of reference material. The samples achieved homogeneity and stability over 360 days for natural orange juice and 530 days for flavored orange juice from the production date. The certified values of aspartame, acesulfame potassium, sodium saccharin, and the measurement uncertainty in natural orange juice were 430 ± 24.2 mg/L, 270 ± 12.0 mg/L, 258 ± 16.2 mg/L, respectively, and in flavored orange juice were 588 ± 28.4 mg/L, 711 ± 31.2 mg/L, 355 ± 20.8 mg/L, respectively, which are consistent with the concentrations of sweeteners (aspartame, acesulfame potassium, sodium saccharin) in beverages according to Circular No. 24/2019/TT-BYT of the Ministry of Health.