Analysis of vitamins

With vitamin expertise and passion at your side

As a food company or food business operator, you need to be able to rely on the fact that your products contain the vitamins as labelled on the packages and therefore meet your quality requirements. The Eurofins laboratories for food and feed analysis in Germany contribute as your competent partner for the analysis of vitamins in various foods.

We test all important vitamins for you: water-soluble vitamins, fat-soluble vitamins and vitamin-like sustances. Through high-quality and reliable tests, we ensure that your products meet all required standards. Our many years of experience in analysing even complex matrices, coupled with a broad validation scope of our methods and the use of state-of-the-art technology, form the basis.

Topic overview

Legal basis: why should vitamins be analysed?
Your laboratory: why should vitamins be analysed by Eurofins?
Vitamins: essential nutrients
Vitamin groups – a compact overview
- water-soluble vitamins
- fat-soluble vitamins
- vitamin-like substances
Food Legislation News
Contact us

Legal basis: why should vitamins be analysed?

According to Regulation (EC) No. 1925/2006^[1], vitamins may be added to various foods. If fortification takes place, the labeling of the vitamin content is also mandatory in accordance with the Regulation (EU) No. 1169/2011^[2] regarding food information. In addition, health claims may only be made if the vitamins are present in a significant quantity. Chemical analysis of the vitamin content is necessary and recommended for various reasons:

verification of the declared vitamin content considering the permitted tolerances according to EU guidelines – avoidance of consumer deception
vitamin analyses as part of stability tests – investigation of possible vitamin degradation during storage
checking homogeneity and correct dosage according to specification
compliance with strict legal requirements including limit values for some product groups:
- infant formula and follow-on formula in accordance with Regulation (EU) No. 2016/127^[3]
- FSMP according to Regulation (EU) No. 2016/128^[4]
- pet food according to the FEDIAF Guideline^[5]

Furthermore, the EU is currently also planning to introduce maximum levels for vitamins in foods, including food supplements.

Your laboratory: Why should vitamins be analysed at Eurofins?

There are many good reasons for an analysis in the Eurofins laboratories for food and feed analysis in Germany. We offer you:

many years of experience in analysing complex matrices (infant formula, FSMP (food for special medical purposes), fortified gummies, etc.)
accredited methods that are generally based on international standards (e.g., AOAC, DIN EN ISO, GB)
broad validation scope (often flexibly accredited)
regular participation in proficiency tests
low detection and determination limits
use of multi-methods: several vitamins can be analysed in one analytical run
vitamin analyses in combination with storage tests under controlled conditions (climatic chamber)
"one-stop-shop": all analyses carried out by one lab

Vitamins: essential nutrients

Vitamins are essential nutrients that play a key role in various physiological processes and cannot be produced by the human body. Therefore, they must be taken in externally through food. In principle, the need for vitamins can be covered by a balanced diet. Nevertheless, numerous foods are fortified with vitamins to compensate for possible nutritional deficiencies or to cover individual nutritional requirements (e.g., for pregnant women or athletes). The following food categories, among others, are of importance:

food supplements (capsules, tablets, drops, gummy bears)
complete foods (infant formula, balanced diets/FSMP, meal replacement products)
fortified foods and health foods (drinks/fruit juices, bars, sports nutrition)

Vitamins are also added to pet food – in the form of complete feeds or as supplements for pets.

Vitamin groups – a compact overview

Vitamins can be divided into two groups: the water-soluble and the fat-soluble vitamins. In addition, there are vitamin-like substances also called vitaminoids.

Water-soluble vitamins

Water-soluble vitamins include the B vitamins and vitamin C. Except for vitamin B12, they cannot be stored by the human body and must therefore be supplied regularly through food.

Vitamin C (ascorbic acid)

Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that has numerous physiological properties due to its reducing effect and plays a central role in an intact immune system. Due to its heat instability, the analysis of vitamin C is recommended for quality control as well as stability and storage tests.

Vitamin B1 (thiamine)

Vitamin B1 is a key substance for energy and carbohydrate metabolism. When fortifying foods with vitamin B1, the chloride or mononitrate form of thiamine is often used. However, the 100% vitamin activity refers to the thiamine cation.

Vitamin B2 (riboflavin)

Vitamin B2 is a quite heat-stable vitamin that is involved in various metabolic processes as a coenzyme. Riboflavin can also be used in foods as an approved color in accordance with the EU Regulation for additives.

Vitamin B3 (niacin)

Vitamin B3 is involved in metabolic processes in the human body and plays a role in cell differentiation. The two vitamin forms nicotinic acid and nicotinamide are combined under this term. When calculating the niacin equivalent, the tryptophan content must also be considered, as this amino acid is a provitamin of niacin.

Vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid)

As a building block of coenzyme A, vitamin B5, is involved in numerous energy and metabolic processes in the body. Compared to some other vitamins, pantothenic acid is quite stable.

Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine)

Vitamin B6 is involved in numerous enzymatic reactions in the body and plays a particularly important role in the metabolism of amino acids and in the formation of neurotransmitters. Vitamin B6 activity is based on the three compounds pyridoxine, pyridoxamine and pyridoxal.

Vitamin B7 (biotin)

Biotin is not only known as vitamin B7, but also as vitamin H and is important for the metabolism of carbohydrates, fats, and amino acids. It has a quite high chemical stability.

Vitamin B9 (folic acid, folate)

Vitamin B9, commonly known as folic acid, is essential for cell division, especially during pregnancy, and plays a role in the formation of DNA and RNA as well as the formation of red blood cells. Synthetic pteroylmonoglutamic acid is often used in foods, but there are also numerous vitamin forms that are increasingly being used. The so-called "dietary folic acid equivalent" is calculated from the pteroylmonoglutamic acid and the dietary folates.

Vitamin B12 (cobalamin)

Vitamin B12 is important for the formation of red blood cells, the function of the nervous system and DNA synthesis. It is mostly used in the form of cyanocobalamin or methylcobalamin.

Fat-soluble vitamins

The fat-soluble vitamins E, D, K and A are absorbed through food and can be stored in the liver and fatty tissue. As fat-soluble vitamins are not excreted via urine compared to water-soluble vitamins, an increased intake can lead to undesirable effects (hypervitaminosis).

Vitamin A (retinol, beta-carotene)

Vitamin A is important for the visual process, immune regulation and for the growth and development of skin and mucous membranes. Vitamin A is often added to foods in the form of retinol acetate or palmitate. As a provitamin of retinol, beta-carotene is also often used as a source of vitamin A. In quality control and as part of stability and storage tests, the analysis of vitamin A is recommended due to its instability.

Vitamin D (calciferol)

Vitamin D supports the absorption of calcium and phosphorus in the intestine and is therefore important for bone health and the immune system. A distinction is made between vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) and vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol), with the latter occurring mainly in mushrooms and certain plants.

Vitamin E (tocopherol)

Vitamin E stabilizes and protects cells from damage caused by oxidation. Vitamin E can therefore also be used in foods as an approved, fat-soluble antioxidant in accordance with the EU Regulation for additives. To calculate the tocopherol equivalent, the various vitamers or tocopherols must be considered.

Vitamin K

Vitamin K plays an important role in blood clotting, bone health and cell growth. It is mainly found in the form of phylloquinone or menaquinone (vitamin K2). Vitamin K3 also plays a role in animal nutrition.

Vitamin-like Substances

In contrast to vitamins, vitamin-like substances (vitaminoids) are not essential nutrients. They can be formed in the metabolism and fulfill similar functions to vitamins.

Inositol

Inositol plays an important role in many metabolic processes and in cell signaling. Before being classified as a vitaminoid, inositol was referred to as vitamin B8.

Choline

Choline plays an important role in the formation of cell membranes and in the transmission of signals between nerve cells. As a component of lecithin, choline is usually ingested with food.

Carnitine

As a transport mediator for fatty acids into the mitochondria, carnitine plays an important role in energy metabolism (beta-oxidation). The most important food source of carnitine is meat.

Food Legislation News

The Eurofins Food Legislation News are published every two months, focusing on innovations in food legislation and interesting court rulings. Here you will regularly find, among other topics, useful information on vitamins and a selected overview of important RASFF rapid alerts.

Get in touch with us

Would you like to order a vitamin analysis, receive advice, or do you have questions for our experts? We look forward to hearing from you! Feel free to contact your personal account manager or the experts listed at Contact.