Determination of Benzimidazole Residues in Livestock Products

This research investigated benzimidazole residues (albendazole, fenbendazole, flubendazole, thiabendazole, oxibendazole) in livestock products. A total of 270 samples of livestock products (beef, pork and chicken) were purchased from local markets in Korea. Ethyl acetate was used to extract analytes from the sample, after which ethyl acetate extracts were purified using a MCX cartridge. Analytes were detected using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. The limit of detection was 0.01-0.04 ppb, the limit of quantification was 0.03-0.13 ppb, the linearity (r ) was 0.9992-1.0000, and the recovery was 70-85%. Residues of benzimidazoles, except for fenbendazole in pork, were not found in any of the 270 livestock samples. Fenbendazole was detected in the range of 1.2 to 3.1 ppb in 12 samples of pork.