What does it take to identify and measure dioxins in the environment and food?
The quantitative chemical analysis of dioxins requires sophisticated methods that are available only in a limited number of laboratories around the world. These are mostly in industrialized countries. The analysis costs are very high and vary according to the type of sample, but range from over US$ 1700 for the analysis of a single biological sample to several thousand US dollars for the comprehensive assessment of release from a waste incinerator. Increasingly, biological (cell- or antibody) -based screening methods are being developed. The use of such methods for food samples is not yet sufficiently validated. Nevertheless, such screening methods will allow more analyses at lower cost. In case of a positive screening test, confirmation of results must be carried out via more complex chemical analysis.
