1. General introduction
- In the food industry, accurately determining sugar and acid content in food is very important to ensure product quality, safety and taste. These parameters are especially important in food groups such as fruit juice, jam, beverages, wine, milk and processed fruit products.
- The enzymatic method (enzyme-based assay) is one of the most popular, reliable and accurate methods for quantifying components such as glucose, fructose, sucrose, lactose, lactic acid, citric acid, acetic acid… in food and beverages.
2. Principle of the Enzymatic method
- The enzymatic method is based on the biochemical reaction between a specific enzyme and the target substrate (sugar or acid). During the reaction, a by-product, usually NADH or NADPH is formed or consumed. The change in concentration of these substances is measured spectrophotometrically (usually at 340 nm), allowing accurate quantification of the analyte.
* Example
- To measure glucose, glucose dehydrogenase enzyme catalyzes the reaction to produce NADPH. The amount of NADPH produced is directly proportional to the amount of glucose in the sample.
- To measure lactic acid, lactate dehydrogenase enzyme catalyzes the reaction converting lactic acid to pyruvate while producing NADH.
3. Advantages of the enzymatic method
- High specificity: each enzyme reacts with only one or a very small group of similar compounds.
- High accuracy and high repeatability.
- Fast analysis time, usually 5-30 minutes depending on the parameter.
- Suitable for many sample types: juice, wine, milk, processed food, plant extracts,.
- Can be automated on dedicated enzyme analysis systems.
4. R-Biopharm enzymatic test kits
- The company R-Biopharm (Germany) is one of the leading suppliers of enzymatic kits used in food analysis. These test kits belong to the Enzytec™ Liquid and Enzytec™ Fluid, designed for both manual and automated methods on biochemistry analyzers.
* Some representative sugar test kits from R-Biopharm
* Some representative acid test kits from R-Biopharm
* Highlights of the Enzytec™ Liquid range
- Ready-to-use solution format, no manual preparation.
- Compatible with spectrophotometers, automated analyzers (such as Gallery™, Konelab™, ILab™, etc.).
- Fast analysis time: from 5 to 15 minutes depending on the parameter.
- Compliant with AOAC, ISO, IFU.
5. Practical applications
Food and beverage manufacturers use R-Biopharm enzymatic test kits to:
- Check input raw materials such as fruit, milk, cereals,...
- Control quality during the production process.
- Verify nutrition labeling claims about sugar or acid content.
- Analyze the final product to meet safety and sensory requirements.
The enzymatic method is a precise, fast and reliable solution for determining sugar and acid content in food. With the advanced enzymatic test kits from R-Biopharm, laboratories and manufacturers can easily control product quality and comply with international standards.
If you need advice or want to select a suitable analysis solution, please contact PacificLAB – the official distributor of R-Biopharm products in Vietnam.
Customers can refer to the details of the products for the analysis of sugars and acids in food at the following link: