Determination of total phosphorus in foods by colorimetry: summary of NMKL collaborative study

A collaborative study was conducted to validate a spectrophotometric-colorimetric method for determining total phosphorus in foods. The sample was dry-ashed in the presence of zinc oxide, and total phosphorus content was measured colorimetrically as molybdenum blue. Twelve laboratories from the Nordic countries participated in the study. The test materials included potato flour, sausage, cold ham, infant formula powder, cheese, and skimmed milk powder. Participants received 12 randomly coded samples of 2 blind duplicates of each material. Phosphorus contents of materials varied between 0.076 and 0.96 g/100 g. Relative standard deviations for repeatability of the method varied from 1.1% for 0.96 g phosphorus/100 g to 5.4% for 0.29 g phosphorus/100 g. Relative standard deviations for reproducibility varied from 3.6% for 0.96 g phosphorus/100 g to 7.7% for 0.23 g phosphorus/100 g. The colorimetric method for determination of total phosphorus in foods has been adopted first action by AOAC INTERNATIONAL as an NMKL/AOAC INTERNATIONAL method.