360
and subsequent isotope ratio studies might provide unique means of differentiating
between different plant sources of origin. Local lead level may become mixed with
external source of contamination that varies with time depending on the anthropogenic activity. There are four stable isotopes of Pb with the following approximate
abundances:
208
Pb (52.4%),
207
Pb (24.1%),
206
Pb (22.1%) and
204
Pb (1.4%).
204
Pb is
non-radiogenic and was not measured in this study because of its low relative abundance.
208
Pb,
207
Pb and
206
Pb are formed by the radioactive decay of
232
Th (halflife = 14 billion years),
235
U (half-life = 0.7 billion years) and
238
U (half- life = 4.5
billion years), respectively (Reimann and de Caritat 1998). Inductively coupled
plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) has been increasingly used in isotope ratio
measurements in recent years. Lead isotope measurements provide analytical information relating to the source of lead contamination in naturally occurring samples
(Reimann and de Caritat 2000). Concentration measurements cannot provide this
kind of information. Studies of the isotopic composition of lead are therefore commonly used in environmental sciences and geological sciences as well.
12.2 Quality Impact of Food Authenticity: General Meaning
Food usually presents the area from which it originates and where it is produced,
and in that way over time, it becomes a symbol of a certain locality, that is, it depicts
the authenticity of a destination. That is why the concept of a geographical indication is most often associated with food. Therefore, for products that have a geographical indication, it can be said that this designation is a symbol of their diversity
and it allows a clear boundary to be drawn between something that is quality and
something that is less quality. As today’s consumer is increasingly demanding in
terms of the value they receive for money, he also sets higher demands in terms of
quality (Giovannucci et al. 2009). From the point of view of food, therefore, he
insists on one that is of high and uniform quality. One of the aspects of food quality
is its geographical origin, which consumers increasingly want to know about.
Producers also realized the importance of this aspect of quality, and as a consequence of the interest of both consumers and producers, in the 1980s, the concept of
geographical indication was developed, as part of the whole of intellectual property
rights. There are over 10,000 products in the world that have a protected geographical origin. In the world, about 90% of products of protected geographical origin
come from the member states of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and
Development, and only 10% of products with a geographical indication come from
developing countries (Giovannucci et al. 2009; Vandecandelaere et al. 2018).
However, regardless of these data, it is interesting to note that some of the most
recognizable products with geographical indications actually come from developing
countries; examples are Mexican tequila, Colombian coffee, Darjeeling tea from the
Himalayas and basmati rice from India (Vandecandelaere et al. 2018). As many as
6000 products with a geographical indication originate from the member states of
the European Union, and among them, in terms of the number of protected products,
L. Fan et al.
and subsequent isotope ratio studies might provide unique means of differentiating
between different plant sources of origin. Local lead level may become mixed with
external source of contamination that varies with time depending on the anthropogenic activity. There are four stable isotopes of Pb with the following approximate
abundances:
208
Pb (52.4%),
207
Pb (24.1%),
206
Pb (22.1%) and
204
Pb (1.4%).
204
Pb is
non-radiogenic and was not measured in this study because of its low relative abundance.
208
Pb,
207
Pb and
206
Pb are formed by the radioactive decay of
232
Th (halflife = 14 billion years),
235
U (half-life = 0.7 billion years) and
238
U (half- life = 4.5
billion years), respectively (Reimann and de Caritat 1998). Inductively coupled
plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) has been increasingly used in isotope ratio
measurements in recent years. Lead isotope measurements provide analytical information relating to the source of lead contamination in naturally occurring samples
(Reimann and de Caritat 2000). Concentration measurements cannot provide this
kind of information. Studies of the isotopic composition of lead are therefore commonly used in environmental sciences and geological sciences as well.
12.2 Quality Impact of Food Authenticity: General Meaning
Food usually presents the area from which it originates and where it is produced,
and in that way over time, it becomes a symbol of a certain locality, that is, it depicts
the authenticity of a destination. That is why the concept of a geographical indication is most often associated with food. Therefore, for products that have a geographical indication, it can be said that this designation is a symbol of their diversity
and it allows a clear boundary to be drawn between something that is quality and
something that is less quality. As today’s consumer is increasingly demanding in
terms of the value they receive for money, he also sets higher demands in terms of
quality (Giovannucci et al. 2009). From the point of view of food, therefore, he
insists on one that is of high and uniform quality. One of the aspects of food quality
is its geographical origin, which consumers increasingly want to know about.
Producers also realized the importance of this aspect of quality, and as a consequence of the interest of both consumers and producers, in the 1980s, the concept of
geographical indication was developed, as part of the whole of intellectual property
rights. There are over 10,000 products in the world that have a protected geographical origin. In the world, about 90% of products of protected geographical origin
come from the member states of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and
Development, and only 10% of products with a geographical indication come from
developing countries (Giovannucci et al. 2009; Vandecandelaere et al. 2018).
However, regardless of these data, it is interesting to note that some of the most
recognizable products with geographical indications actually come from developing
countries; examples are Mexican tequila, Colombian coffee, Darjeeling tea from the
Himalayas and basmati rice from India (Vandecandelaere et al. 2018). As many as
6000 products with a geographical indication originate from the member states of
the European Union, and among them, in terms of the number of protected products,
L. Fan et al.