This study examined the applicability of stable isotope and multi-element data for determining the geographical origin of fresh apple juices. Samples included three apple cultivars (Idared, Golden Delicious and Topaz) harvested in 2011 and 2012 from five different geographical regions of Slovenia. Regional discrimination of the juice samples was most successful when using linear discriminant analysis (LDA) and taking into account the following parameters: δ2H and δ18O content of juice water; δ15N and δ13C content of the pulp, (D/H)I and (D/H)II in ethanol and the concentration of S, Cl, Fe, Cu, Zn and Sr. Overall prediction ability was 83.9%. The factors that best distinguished the different types of cultivar were the δ2H and δ18O content of fruit juice water; the δ13C and (D/H)I content of ethanol; and the concentration of S, Mg, K, Cu, and Ti. Prediction ability, taking into account all ten parameters, was 75.8%.

Stable isotope and elemental analysis, together with statistical processing of the resultant data has been used to determine the geographical origin of poultry and hence provide a means to verify poultry labels originating from major producing countries/regions. Multivariate statistical analysis has demonstrated that 18 variables, including carbon, hydrogen and nitrogen stable isotope ratios and elemental concentrations of magnesium, thallium, rubidium and molybdenum, are important parameters in poultry origin determination. Using cross-validated discriminant analysis 88.3% of poultry geographical origins were correctly classified (n = 339). Individual correct- classification rates were as follows; China, 100% (n = 36); Brazil, 94.1% (n = 101); Europe 92% (n=87); Chile 82.6% (n =46); Thailand, 70.3% (n = 46) and Argentina 50% (n = 10). The main identification errors were associated with miss-classification of Argentinean samples with those originating from Chile and Thailand. Carbon stable isotope ratios of chicken meat indicate the quantity of maize in the diet and this leads to useful discrimination between a large proportion of European poultry and poultry reared in locations such as South America, Thailand and China where maize feeding predominates. The use of poultry carbon isotope values as a simple ‘screening’ parameter to differentiate European poultry meat from other major importers is not as reliable as for the differentiation of European and South American beef. However carbon isotope ratios will be useful in most instances to corroborate suspicion of mislabelling of non corn-fed European poultry. The stable isotopes of hydrogen and oxygen in chicken meat change in a similar way to surface waters around the globe. Our findings support the hypothesis that the global isotopic variation of stable isotopes in drinking water and feed are transferred into animal tissue and can be used to help establish an animal’s geographic origin. This is a significant finding and mirrors our observations for beef skeletal muscle δ2H ‰ and δ18O ‰ values. These systematic variations can be exploited to give a ‘low-resolution’ indication of an animal’s geographic origin (e.g. Northern Europe versus the tropics).

Stable (H,O,N,C) and radiogenic isotope (Sr) data for cheese, milk, animal feed and soil from six artisanal cheese producers in Quebec, Canada, demonstrated the potential of isotope geochemistry in linking land/terroir to agricultural produce. The hydrogen and oxygen isotope compositions of the water, milk and cheese samples showed good general alignment with the Global Meteoric Water Line, with small off-sets in the milk and cheese samples related to cheese production. Carbon and nitrogen isotope data for the cheese and milk reflect the diet of the cattle and fertilization of the cattle grazing pastures. The strontium isotope compositions of the soils, milk and cheese are similar for a given farm/cheese producer, but vary widely between producers due to differences in geology. Combining the climate-sensitive δ18O and geology-sensitive 87Sr/86Sr proxies shows potential for discriminating between Quebec artisanal cheeses, commercial Canadian cheeses and European cheeses

The objective of this preliminary study is to demonstrate that the combination of multi- -element analysis, several isotopic ratios (13C/12C, 15N/14N, 18O/16O, 2H/1H) and selected chemical and physical parameters (fruit mass, antioxidant activity, content of ascorbic acid and total phenols) can be used to differentiate the varieties of Slovenian apples, the geo- graphical location of their growth and agricultural practice. The stable isotope parameters in sugar, pulp, protein and water were shown to be the most significant variables in this regard. Botanical origin (cultivar) was found to have a major influence on the d13C and d15N values of proteins and the d18O and dD values of water. Geographical regions were well separated based on the d18O and dD values in water and the concentrations of Rb and S in fruit juice. The most significant variables to distinguish between organically and con- ventionally cultivated fruits were found to be 15N/14N ratio and antioxidant activity. In ad- dition, significant differences were also observed in ascorbic acid content.