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The authenticity identification of teas ( Camellia sinensis L.) of different seasons according to their multi‐elemental fingerprints
Author(s) -
Zhao Haiyan,
Zhao Fangyuan
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
international journal of food science and technology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.831
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1365-2621
pISSN - 0950-5423
DOI - 10.1111/ijfs.13935
Subject(s) - camellia sinensis , linear discriminant analysis , growing season , horticulture , mathematics , biology , botany , statistics
Summary The objective of this study was to investigate the feasibility of discriminating harvest seasons of tea by the multi‐elemental fingerprinting technique. A total of 162 tea leaf samples were collected in spring, summer and autumn of 2015 and 2016 respectively. The concentrations of 25 elements were determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Analysis of variance and linear discriminant analysis were performed to analyse the differences of tea leaves of different harvest seasons and years and identify the seasons and years of tea leaves. The results showed that tea leaves of different harvest seasons and years had their own elemental profiles. For tea leaves of 2015 and 2016, using the established discriminant models, the total accuracy of season‐based identification reached 95.1% and 87.7% respectively. The classifications of tea leaves of different years were 100% accurate. Therefore, the multi‐elemental fingerprinting technique can be used to identify harvest seasons of tea.