Rapid determination of total fats and fat-soluble vitamins in Parmigiano cheese and salami by SFE

Supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) was used to determine total fat and fat-soluble vitamins in Parmigiano cheese and salami. Extracts were obtained quickly and effectively to gravimetrically determine total fat. The results were compared with traditional methods and the quantity extracted and collected by supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO2) was statistically equivalent to the Soxhlet extraction. In addition, the use of SFE as a preparative analysis was tested to determine in a rapid and simultaneous way the fat-soluble vitamin extracted by SFE and subsequently determined by HPLC. The extractability of vitamins by SFE was comparable to the official methods. a-tocopherol was higher probably because SC-CO2 extraction is necessarily conducted in the absence of light and oxygen, and lower temperature than traditional methods. RSD% was lower than 20% for total fat determination, while it was sometimes higherforfat-soluble vitamins determination.