Patulin Occurrence in Traditional Turkish Molasses (Pekmez): Comparisons Across Product Types and Associations with pH and Soluble Solids

Patulin occurrence in traditional Turkish molasses (pekmez), particularly products made from raw materials other than apple, remains poorly characterized. This exploratory cross-sectional study determined patulin concentrations, pH, and soluble-solids content (°Brix) in 25 purposively selected samples obtained from selected provinces in Türkiye, comprising apple (n = 6), mulberry (n = 7), sugar beet (n = 6), and grape (n = 6) molasses. Patulin was quantified by high-performance liquid chromatography with diode-array detection (HPLC-DAD), and between-type differences and associations with pH and °Brix were evaluated using nonparametric methods. The median patulin concentration was 67.30 µg/kg (interquartile range: 39.75–107.65 µg/kg; range: below the limit of detection to 672.50 µg/kg). No statistically significant differences in patulin concentrations or °Brix were detected among molasses types (p = 0.442 and p = 0.108), whereas pH differed significantly (p = 0.001), with apple molasses having a lower pH than mulberry and grape molasses. No statistically significant correlations were detected between patulin concentration and either pH or °Brix. Fifteen of the 25 analyzed samples (60.0%) had concentrations above the 50 µg/kg contextual comparison value, which is not a product-specific regulatory limit for molasses. In serving-based adult exposure scenarios, median-based hazard quotients ranged from 0.041 to 0.084, while the maximum-concentration scenario yielded 0.648. Without matrix-specific recovery and precision, non-apple comparisons remain preliminary. These findings provide initial comparative evidence of patulin occurrence within the analyzed sample set and should not be generalized to traditional molasses production throughout Türkiye. Broader surveillance should incorporate geographically representative sampling and habitual-consumption data.