Abstract
A colorimetric method for determining carbadox in complete swine feeds and feed supplements was collaboratively studied. Carbadox is separated from feed with CHCl3-methanol (3+1) and then separated from interfering materials by a series of solvent-solvent extractions. The drug is isolated as a dry residue, reconstituted, and reacted with stannous chloride to form a colored complex that is measured at 520 nm. The method of standard additions is used to compensate for a feed or feed supplement matrix effect. Twenty-seven laboratories assayed feeds containing 0.0013, 0.0053, and 0.0242% carbadox. The repeatability standard deviation (σ0) and reproducibility standard deviation (σx) were σ0 = 0.00014%, σx = 0.00035% (29% of grand mean) for 0.0013% carbadox in feed; σ0 = 0.00025%, σx = 0.00037% (6.7% of grand mean) for 0.0053% carbadox in feed; and σ0 = 0.0019%, σx = 0.0024% (9.6% of grand mean) for 0.0242% carbadox in feed. The between-laboratory variance ratio was not significant for feeds containing 0.0013 and 0.0053% carbadox, but was significant for feeds containing 0.0242% carbadox. The mean recovery values for feeds containing 0.0013, 0.0053, and 0.0242% carbadox were 92, 104, and 103%, respectively. The method was adopted as official first action for feeds having a guaranteed potency of 0.0055% carbadox or higher.