Application of Stable Isotope Analysis for Detecting the Geographical Origin of the Greek Currants “Vostizza”: A Preliminary Study

Abstract

There is a plethora of food products with geographical indications registered in the European Union without any study about their discrimination from other similar products. This is also the case for Greek currants. This paper aims to analyze if stable isotope analysis of C, N, and S could discriminate the Greek currants “Vositzza”, registered as a product of Protected Designation of Origin, from two other currants registered as products of Protected Geographical Indication coming from neighboring areas. The first results show that the stable isotope ratio of sulfur is not detectable due to the very low sulfur content in the samples, and the analysis should be based on the stable isotope ratios of carbon and nitrogen to discriminate these products. The mean value of δ15N (1.38‰) of PDO “Vostizza” currants is lower than that of currants grown outside the PDO zone (2.01‰), while the mean value of δ13C of PDO “Vostizza” currants is higher (−23.93‰) in comparison to that of currants grown outside the PDO zone (−24.83‰). Nevertheless, the results indicate that with only two isotopic ratios, discrimination could not be achieved, and further analysis is required.