Sampling, sample handling and sample preparation of raw sugar, white sugar, speciality sugars and plantation white sugar

Good sampling methods can reduce the sampling error, bad increase it; the contribution of sampling error to what is perceived to be analytical error is as important as any error in the analyses themselves. The ICUMSA® Referee for Sampling, sample Handling and sample Preparation has carried out a three stage study to establish new sampling guidelines for crystalline and liquid sugars. The paper is a shortened version of his report for the ICUMSA® Proceedings 2021 detailing the experimental layout aiming to obtain an optimized way of preparing test samples from laboratory samples. The analytical results of the conductometric ash determination with their statistical analysis are given and compared with previous studies. Based on the results the 2022 ICUMSA® Methods book includes new standards on the collection of laboratory samples, highlighting known pitfalls and suggesting ways that they may be avoided.