From an INSIGNIA-EU sample to a number or name in an Excel file

Sjef van der Steen

October 2023

The absurdly long title of this blog has 14 words. This number 14 is about half of the steps that need to be taken before an INSIGNIA-EU sample is a reliable number. I have calculated it for you. For the APIStrip there are 27. From making to the beekeeper there are 5, from the apiary to the laboratory also 5 and the other 17 steps are laboratory work, from extraction, purification, analysis to result, identification and confirmation. I am not going to show you the steps of APITrap (microplastics), honey (polar pesticides), silicone bands (VOC), silicone benches (PAHs), propolis (heavy metals) and pollen (botanical family and species). about that much, but instead I'll show you a series of photos. These photos are from my visits to the laboratories where I was briefed on the analyses. The craftsmanship and dedication of all links in the above process, from beekeeper through national coordinator, and the laboratories to data analysis, modeling is very important. Everyone is aware that an error somewhere in the chain affects the result.