Simple Determination of Glyphosate and Its Metabolite (Aminomethylphosphonic Acid) in Fruits and Vegetables by High Performance Liquid Chromatography with Fluorescence Detection

A simple method to detect glyphosate (PMG: (N-phosphonomethyl) glycine) and its metabolite (AMPA: aminomethylphosphonic acid) in fruits and vegetables by high performance liquid chromatography with a fluorescence detection was developed. PMG and AMPA were extracted from fruits and vegetables with water, and the extracted solution was washed with chloroform. The water layer was further purified on a cation exchange column, and the isolated PMG and AMPA were derivatized with 9-fluorenylmethylchloroformate (FMOC). The reaction products in the water layer were rinsed with ethyl acetate and then measured by high performance liquid chromatography with a fluorescence detection. The recoveries of PMG and AMPA added to fruits were above 68 and 88% at 0.1ppm and 1.0ppm, respectively. Detection limits were 0.05ppm. This method is applicable for routine analysis of PMG and AMPA in fruits and vegetables.