Collaborative study of a method for the extraction of light filth from whole, cracked, or flaked and ground spices.

An improved method has been developed for the extraction of light filth from whole, cracked, or flaked spices (basil, bay leaves, clery leaves, chervil, chives, dill weed, mint flakes, parsley, rosemary, sage, tarragon, thyme, and vegetable flakes) and from ground spices (cloves, cumin, marjoram, mustard seed, oregano, sage, and thyme). The method involves a chloroform or isopropanol defatting, followed by a direct flotation from 40% isopropanol with Tween 80-EDTA (1+1) and mineral oil-heptane (85+15). Collaborative results show that the proposed method is more rapid to perform and yields better filth recoveries than the official first action methods for ground spices, 44.116, and whole, cracked, or flaked spices, 44.129. The method has been adopted as official first action.