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Published on: June 3, 2020
Geographic origins of Korean and Chinese kimchi determined by multiple elements
Yeon-Sik Bong1, Mukesh Kumar Gautam, Mi-Ran LA
1Division of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Ochang Center, Korea Basic Science Institute, Ochang-eup, Cheongwon-gun, Chungbuk 363-883, Republic of Korea.
Abstract:
An elemental analysis was performed on 30 Korean and Chinese kimchi samples in combination with strontium (Sr) isotope ratio measurements to develop a method for tracing the geographic origins of Korean and Chinese kimchi. We found a distinct difference between Korean and Chinese kimchi in such specific elements as K, Na, Ca, Ba, Sr, Zn, Li, and Sc, but no significant difference in the Sr isotope ratio. A comparative analysis was performed with washed kimchi (containing no submaterial) and unwashed kimchi to evaluate the effect of submaterials on the determination of geographic origin. A linear discriminant analysis provided a clear distinction between Korean and Chinese kimchi. The results indicate that combining multi-elemental and statistical analyses has the potential to determine the geographic origins of such processed food as kimchi.
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