Black Tea Analysis plays a major role in the identification of black tea contents, quality control of commercial tea beverages and extracts, and identifying the microbiological aspects of the black tea.

The elements analyzed include; –

• Microbial analysis– Yeast, Molds, Staphylococcus aureus, E.coli, Salmonella spp
• Contaminant analysis– Total Aflatoxin, Iron filings, Arsenic, Cadmium, Lead
• Compositional Analysis– Moisture, Water extract, Total ash, Water soluble ash, Total polyphenols, Alkalinity of water soluble ash, Acid insoluble ash, Crude fiber
• Fluoride and aluminum analysis
• Pesticide residue analysis– GC-MS Screening, LC-MS Screening
• Heavy metals analysis- Lead, Cadmium, Copper, Iron, Zinc, Arsenic

Benefits of tea testing

Tea testing is important as it helps everyone along the value chain including; manufacturers, importers and sellers. In the long run it aids the final consumer since the high quality of the product being consumed is assured.

Our microbial analysis covers all the main disease-causing agents, including bacteria, fungi and viruses. With our tests we can help you ensure that your produce is free from all the major food-borne disease that pose a human health risk, including E. Coli, F. Coliforms, Listeria, Salmonella and many more.

Mycotoxins are toxic compounds that are naturally produced by certain types of fungi. These fungi can be found in food such as maize, cereals, dried fruits, coffee, nuts and spices. The fungi can colonise the food before or after harvest, and even during storage, if the food is stored in warm, damp and humid conditions.

As they grow, the fungi produce mycotoxins which are chemically stable and can survive food processing. These mycotoxins can cause several different diseases and adverse health effects, including cancer if you are exposed for prolonged periods.

Several hundred different mycotoxins have been identified, but the most commonly observed mycotoxins that present a concern to human and livestock health are aflatoxins, ochratoxin A, patulin, fumonisins, zearalenone and nivalenol/deoxynivalenol.  Cropnuts can help you identify all these different mycotoxins and help you control them in your crops and storage facilities.

With increasing consumer awareness, testing your produce for pesticide residues (MRL) and heavy metal contaminants is becoming increasingly important. Many countries, including those in the EU, have very stringent regulations which govern the maximum acceptable pesticide residues (MRL) and heavy metal contaminants in exported produce.

Cropnuts offer a screening service, using gas chromatography to screen your produce for over 500 pesticides in a single multi-residue test. We can also quantify specific compounds such as glyphosate, as well as heavy metals like boron and lead. If required, we can also provide you with a QS (Qualitat und Sicherheit) label, demonstrating that your produce is fit for domestic sale as well as export to Europe, US or Asia.

Adequate food labelling is a legal requirement in most countries, and we can provide most of the nutritional value tests you need to accurately label your produce. This includes the “Big Four” (energy, protein, carbohydrates and fats), the “Big Eight” (moisture, ash, dietary fibre, protein, fat, fatty acids, carbohydrates, sugars, salt and energy) as well as vitamins and minerals.

We can also do additional testing for sulphites, bromide, nitrates and specific sugars as well as organic food acids, classification of fruit juice and stevia. For specialist health products we can also quantify quercetin, lycopene, glucosinolates and carotenoids.

This isn’t an exhaustive list, so if the test you want isn’t listed here, please contact us.

Heavy metals are highly toxic and even small amounts of lead, cadmium, mercury and arsenic can have serious implications for livestock and human health. Many heavy metal that are naturally present in the soil and water. They can also be found in farm inputs such as fertilizers and pesticides, or accidental pollution of the ground water. These are all sources of contamination in your produce.

Cropnuts can test your produce for all these compounds, and help you ensure they are within the strict legal limits defined by the WHO and national governments.