Resonance Raman Quantification of Nutritionally Important Carotenoids in Fruits, Vegetables, and Their Juices in Comparison to High-Pressure Liquid Chromatography Analysis

A rapid nondestructive estimation of carotenoid levels in intact fruits and vegetables and their juices could have great value when selecting nutritionally valuable crops for further propagation and commercial use. Carotenoid levels of a variety of agricultural products and juices were measured using resonance Raman spectroscopy and compared to levels determined by extraction and high-pressure liquid chromatography. A strong correlation was observed between the two methods when evaluating juices and when comparing different strains of intact tomatoes at the same stage of ripening. Keywords: β-Carotene; lycopene; lutein; zeaxanthin; Raman spectroscopy; HPLC