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Occurrence of Rhodamine B (RhB) contamination in paprika caused by agricultural materials during the vegetation process has been reported. It may transfer during the process of active compounds extraction, and eventually exist in final products. Herein, the re-distribution of RhB during the extraction process was assessed in terms of RhB contents, as well as mass, color value and capsaicinoids yield of each process. Results revealed that natural RhB contamination at 0.55-1.11µg/kg originated from raw paprika fruit then transferred with the extraction proceeded. About 95.5% of RhB was found in red oleoresin. After separation of red oleoresin, 91.6% of RhB was remained in capsicum oleoresin, only 3.7% in paprika red. These results were consistent with total capsaicinoids recovery of each product. The RhB levels in edible capsicum oleoresin in our present study at 0.01-0.34µg/kg did not exceed the legal limits established by the European Union.

Tomato peel is a promising source of lycopene. Benzo(a)pyrene, benzo(a)anthracene, benzo(b)fluoranthene, and chrysene (PAH 4) are polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) classed as priority pollutants by the European Union that can be sorbed by tomato peel and transferred to lycopene products. Here, the transfer of PAH 4 to extracted lycopene was assessed. Between 77.69% and 102.99% of PAH 4 in tomato peel was transferred to tomato oleoresin. The PAH transfer rate was closely related to the log (octanol-water partition coefficient). PAH partitioning depended on the PAH solubility in the different phases used. Only 0.028%-0.058% of the PAHs entered lycopene crystals, the rest remaining in the residue. This indicated that crystallization efficiently excluded PAH 4. Lycopene crystals 96.71% pure were produced that could be used in various commercial products. An exposure and risk assessment indicated that PAH 4 in lycopene do not pose strong risks to people consuming lycopene microcapsules.

This paper reports on the environmental rhodamine B (RhB) contamination in capsicum caused by agricultural materials during the vegetation process. Ultra-performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) was applied to detect 64 capsicum samples from China, Peru, India and Burma. Results demonstrated that RhB was found in all samples at low concentrations (0.11-0.98 μg/kg), indicating RhB contamination in capsicums is probably a ubiquitous phenomenon. In addition, studies into soils, roots, stems and leaves in Handan of Hebei province, China showed that the whole ecologic chain had been contaminated with RhB with the highest levels in leaves. The investigation into the agricultural environment in Handan of Hebei province and Korla of Xinjiang province, China demonstrated that the appearances of RhB contamination in the tested capsicums are mainly due to the agricultural materials contamination. The study verified that environmental contamination should be an important origin for the RhB contamination in capsicum fruits.