A need for determination of arsenic species at low levels in cereal-based food and infant cereals. Validation of a method by IC–ICPMS

•A method is developed and validated to determine arsenic species in cereal-based food.•The method was applied to a variety of cereal products including infant cereals.•The method is useful for regulation of inorganic arsenic content in food commodities. The present study arose from the need to determine inorganic arsenic (iAs) at low levels in cereal-based food. Validated methods with a low limit of detection (LOD) are required to analyse these kinds of food. An analytical method for the determination of iAs, methylarsonic acid (MA) and dimethylarsinic acid (DMA) in cereal-based food and infant cereals is reported. The method was optimised and validated to achieve low LODs. Ion chromatography-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (IC–ICPMS) was used for arsenic speciation. The main quality parameters were established. To expand the applicability of the method, different cereal products were analysed: bread, biscuits, breakfast cereals, wheat flour, corn snacks, pasta and infant cereals. The total and inorganic arsenic content of 29 cereal-based food samples ranged between 3.7–35.6 and 3.1–26.0μgAskg−1, respectively. The present method could be considered a valuable tool for assessing inorganic arsenic contents in cereal-based foods.