Overview
EN ISO 9233-1:2018 (ISO 9233-1 | IDF 140-1:2018) is the CEN-endorsed international standard that specifies a molecular absorption spectrometric method for the determination of natamycin content in cheese rind. The method targets natamycin mass fractions above 0.5 mg/kg and surface-area-related natamycin masses above 0.03 mg/dm². The standard is part of the ISO 9233 / IDF 140 series covering analytical methods for natamycin in cheese, and may also be suitable for detecting migration of natamycin from rind into cheese interior.
Key Topics and Requirements
- Scope and applicability: Measurement of natamycin in cheese rind using UV molecular absorption spectrometry; limits defined in the standard.
- Principle: Extraction of natamycin from rind followed by spectrometric measurement of UV absorbance against calibrated standards.
- Sampling and test portion: Procedures for selecting and preparing representative rind and (where relevant) cheese interior samples.
- Reagents and apparatus: Specification of chemicals and laboratory equipment required for reliable extraction and spectrometric analysis.
- Preparation of test solutions: Steps to prepare samples and standard solutions for accurate absorbance measurement.
- Determination and detection limits: Guidance on sensitivity for reliably quantifying natamycin at or above the stated thresholds.
- Calculations and reporting: Methods to calculate mass fraction, surface-area-related natamycin mass, expression of results and corrections.
- Precision and validation: Information on repeatability, reproducibility and interlaboratory trial results to support method performance.
- Test report requirements: Minimum information to be included when reporting analytical results.
Applications
- Routine quality control in dairy processing and cheese manufacturing to verify permitted natamycin levels on rinds.
- Regulatory compliance testing by food safety authorities to enforce local or EU rules on natamycin use.
- Research and product development to study preservative distribution, rind treatments, and possible migration into cheese.
- Third-party testing laboratories providing certification, conformity assessment, or supplier verification services.
Who should use this standard
- Dairy laboratories and QC teams in cheese factories
- Accredited analytical laboratories performing food safety testing
- Regulators and inspection services monitoring additive levels
- R&D scientists studying cheese preservation and shelf life
Related standards
- Other parts of the ISO 9233 / IDF 140 series (see ISO catalog) cover additional methods and sample matrices related to natamycin determination.
- CEN adoption: published as EN ISO 9233-1:2018, replacing the 2013 edition.
Keywords: EN ISO 9233-1:2018, ISO 9233-1, natamycin, cheese rind, molecular absorption spectrometric method, determination of natamycin content, surface-area-related mass.