An inductively coupled plasma-tandem mass spectrometry (ICP-MS/MS) method was established for the analysis of 26 inorganic elements in dairy products. Under MS/MS conditions, the 26 elements were detected in the no gas, collision gas (He) or reaction gas (H₂, O₂, NH₃/He) mode and the optimal mode was selected for each of the elements. The results showed that calibration curve with good linearity was obtained for each element in the appropriate detection mode with a correlation coefficient greater than 0.9990. The detection limits of the 26 inorganic elements ranged from 0.00003361 to 0.04371 mg/kg. The spiked recoveries were between 95.50% and 104.21%, with a relative standard deviation (RSD) ≤ 3.94% (n = 11). The contents of Na, Mg, K, Ca, P, Fe and Zn were higher and the contents of the heavy metal elements Cr, As, Cd and Pb were lower in six kinds of dairy products, all of which were lower than the national standard limits. The method was characterized by simple pretreatment, high sensitivity, low limit of detection and high accuracy and could be used for the detection of inorganic elements in dairy products.

As an important part of modern diet, the elemental composition of pre-prepared meat (PM) directly affects consumers’ health. This study aims to reveal the true content and distribution characteristics of elements in PM through inductively coupled plasma-tandem mass spectrometry (ICP-MS/MS), providing a scientific basis for food safety regulation, nutritional assessment and product development. This study optimized the pretreatment conditions, ultimately selecting 5 mL of HNO₃ + 2 mL of 30% H₂O₂ as the digestion reagent, and using microwave digestion conditions with a maximum temperature of 190 °C to digest the samples, and then detecting the content of various elements in PM through ICP-MS/MS. The results showed that all elements had good linear relationships with the linear correlation coefficients greater than 0.999 7. The detection limits ranging from 0.620 to 421 ng/L, the spiked recoveries reach 93.4%–105.0%, and the relative standard deviations less than 5.89%. The measurement results of the national standard chicken meat substance (GBW10018) are all within the standard deviation range of the standard value, which indicates that this method has high accuracy and precision and is suitable for the detection of PM products. Using this method, we evaluated the content of 22 elements in PM, including pork, beef, mutton, chicken and duck meat. The results showed that the contents of Ca, Mg, Zn, and Fe in the five types of PM were relatively high, while the contents of heavy metal elements were very low. This study provides technical support for the strict monitoring of PM, which also offers consumers a more transparent and secure basis for food selection, thereby promoting the popularization of healthy eating concepts.