Food adulteration and authenticity testing MCQs Food science December 27, 2025August 5, 2024 by u930973931_answers 46 min Score: 0 Attempted: 0/46 Subscribe 1. . What is food adulteration? (A) The addition of substances that are harmful to health (B) The mixing of inferior substances with food (C) The addition of substances to enhance nutritional value (D) The improvement of flavor in food 2. . Which of the following is a common method used to detect food adulteration? (A) Sensory evaluation (B) Cooking (C) Chromatography (D) Freezing 3. . What does the term “food authenticity” refer to? (A) Ensuring food is free from contaminants (B) Enhancing the nutritional value of food (C) Verifying that food is what it claims to be (D) Improving the taste of food 4. . Which technique is commonly used to verify the authenticity of olive oil? (A) Gas chromatography (GC) (B) High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) (C) Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy (D) Infrared (IR) spectroscopy 5. . Which of the following is an indicator of milk adulteration? (A) Increased density (B) Lower pH (C) Increased viscosity (D) Higher freezing point 6. . What type of adulterant is commonly found in honey? (A) Synthetic flavors (B) Artificial colorants (C) High-fructose corn syrup (D) Preservatives 7. . Which method is used to detect the presence of starch in wheat flour? (A) Biuret test (B) Benedict’s test (C) Iodine test (D) Litmus test 8. . How can the authenticity of vanilla extract be verified? (A) Ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy (B) Thin-layer chromatography (TLC) (C) Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) (D) Infrared (IR) spectroscopy 9. . What is the purpose of using stable isotope analysis in food authenticity testing? (A) To determine the geographic origin of food (B) To enhance the flavor of food (C) To detect the presence of preservatives (D) To assess the nutritional content of food 10. . Which of the following is a common adulterant in ground spices? (A) High-fructose corn syrup (B) Artificial sweeteners (C) Synthetic colors (D) Talcum powder 11. . Which test is used to detect the presence of artificial sweeteners in food products? (A) Gas chromatography (GC) (B) HPLC (C) Sensory evaluation (D) Refractive index measurement 12. . What is the purpose of using DNA barcoding in food authenticity testing? (A) To identify the species of origin of food (B) To detect adulterants (C) To measure nutritional content (D) To assess flavor quality 13. . Which technique is used to detect the presence of synthetic dyes in food? (A) Thin-layer chromatography (TLC) (B) High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) (C) Gas chromatography (GC) (D) Atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS) 14. . What adulterant might be found in fruit juices to increase sweetness? (A) Sodium benzoate (B) Artificial flavors (C) High-fructose corn syrup (D) Synthetic colors 15. . Which method is used to test for the presence of melamine in milk products? (A) Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) (B) Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) (C) Atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS) (D) Infrared (IR) spectroscopy 16. . What is the primary goal of food authenticity testing? (A) To ensure food quality and safety (B) To enhance food flavor (C) To reduce production costs (D) To improve food appearance 17. . Which type of food product is commonly tested for adulteration with animal fats? (A) Coffee (B) Honey (C) Fruit juices (D) Margarine 18. . What is one of the main indicators of adulteration in honey? (A) High protein content (B) Low glucose concentration (C) Low fructose concentration (D) High moisture content 19. . Which method is used to analyze the fatty acid profile of oils for authenticity testing? (A) Infrared (IR) spectroscopy (B) High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) (C) Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy (D) Gas chromatography (GC) 20. . What adulterant is commonly found in ground coffee? (A) Synthetic colors (B) Artificial sweeteners (C) Artificial flavors (D) Starch 21. . Which technique is employed to detect the presence of pesticide residues in food? (A) Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) (B) Thin-layer chromatography (TLC) (C) Atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS) (D) Ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy 22. . What is a common method for detecting the adulteration of fruit jams with synthetic pectin? (A) Gel electrophoresis (B) High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) (C) Infrared (IR) spectroscopy (D) Sensory evaluation 23. . Which of the following is a common adulterant in milk? (A) Glucose (B) Water (C) Flour (D) Artificial colors 24. . What is the main reason for using stable isotope ratio analysis in food authenticity testing? (A) To detect foodborne pathogens (B) To determine the geographic origin of the food (C) To measure the nutritional content (D) To assess food flavor 25. . Which method can be used to detect the presence of synthetic food colors? (A) High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) (B) Gas chromatography (GC) (C) Refractive index measurement (D) Sensory evaluation 26. . What adulterant might be added to olive oil to reduce costs? (A) Soybean oil (B) Corn syrup (C) Artificial flavoring (D) Synthetic colors 27. . Which of the following methods is used to detect the presence of artificial vanilla flavoring in food? (A) Thin-layer chromatography (TLC) (B) Ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy (C) Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy (D) Gas chromatography (GC) 28. . What method is commonly used to test for the presence of added sugar in fruit juices? (A) Gas chromatography (GC) (B) High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) (C) Atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS) (D) Infrared (IR) spectroscopy 29. . Which technique is used to test for the presence of prohibited dyes in food products? (A) High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) (B) Gas chromatography (GC) (C) Thin-layer chromatography (TLC) (D) Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy 30. . What is a common indicator of adulteration in packaged fruit juices? (A) High sugar content (B) Low acidity (C) High viscosity (D) Increased color intensity 31. . Which test is used to detect the presence of starch in honey? (A) Benedict’s test (B) Iodine test (C) Biuret test (D) Litmus test 32. . What is the purpose of using infrared spectroscopy in food authenticity testing? (A) To separate different components in a mixture (B) To analyze molecular vibrations and identify functional groups (C) To detect the presence of contaminants (D) To measure the concentration of sugars 33. . What is a common adulterant in ground black pepper? (A) Synthetic flavors (B) Artificial colors (C) Starch (D) Papaya seeds 34. . Which method is used to detect the presence of milk proteins in dairy products? (A) Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy (B) Gas chromatography (GC) (C) High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) (D) Immunoassays 35. . What is the primary use of isotope ratio mass spectrometry in food testing? (A) To analyze nutritional content (B) To detect foodborne pathogens (C) To determine the geographic origin of food (D) To identify flavor compounds 36. . Which of the following methods is used to detect the presence of synthetic flavorings in food? (A) Infrared (IR) spectroscopy (B) Atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS) (C) Ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy (D) Gas chromatography (GC) 37. . What is a common method for testing the authenticity of coffee? (A) Sensory evaluation (B) High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) (C) Gas chromatography (GC) (D) Infrared (IR) spectroscopy 38. . Which of the following is a key indicator of adulteration in extra virgin olive oil? (A) Low acidity (B) High free fatty acids (C) High peroxide value (D) Low polyphenol content 39. . What technique is used to identify the presence of starch in various food products? (A) Biuret test (B) Benedict’s test (C) Iodine test (D) Litmus test 40. . Which method is used to analyze the authenticity of dairy products for the presence of animal milk proteins? (A) Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) (B) Gas chromatography (GC) (C) High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) (D) Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy 41. . What is the purpose of using thin-layer chromatography (TLC) in food authenticity testing? (A) To enhance the flavor of food (B) To measure the concentration of a compound (C) To separate and identify components of a mixture (D) To detect microbial contamination 42. . Which method is used to detect the presence of synthetic sweeteners in soft drinks? (A) Atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS) (B) Gas chromatography (GC) (C) High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) (D) Refractive index measurement 43. . What is a common indicator of adulteration in fruit jams? (A) High sugar content (B) Low acidity (C) Increased color intensity (D) High moisture content 44. . Which of the following methods is used to test for the presence of added water in milk? (A) Iodine test (B) Freezing point depression (C) Biuret test (D) Sensory evaluation 45. . Which technique is used to verify the authenticity of saffron? (A) High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) (B) Gas chromatography (GC) (C) Infrared (IR) spectroscopy (D) Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy 46. . What adulterant is commonly used to dilute honey? (A) Sodium benzoate (B) Artificial sweeteners (C) High-fructose corn syrup (D) Synthetic flavors