A method for the determination of vitamin K3 in premixes and animal feedstuffs with the aid of high performance liquid chromatography.

A method for the chemical determination of vitamin K3 in vitamin premixes and feedstuffs is described. The extraction of the active compound and its conversion into menadione is carried out in the same flask. The extract can be used directly for the HPLC determination with UV detection. In the case of low vitamin K3 levels (less than 2 ppm menadione) the extraction solvent should be replaced by the elution solvent used for the HPLC. The procedure had a detection limit of 0.5 ppm menadione. The relative standard deviation, determined with an 8 ppm feed sample is +/- 6% (n = 9).