What quantity should the sample represent?
First establish whether the question concerns an individual sample or a defined batch. Record batch boundaries, packaging units and storage condition. Agree a sampling plan with the laboratory. A convenient individual sample should not automatically be treated as representative of an entire harvest.
Prepare a traceable handover
Document the responsible person, time, sampling points and sample identifier. Agree quantity, container, storage and lawful transport before dispatch. Keep handover records with the report. Do not later open or combine samples on your own if that changes the agreed procedure.
Uncertainty starts before the instrument
Eurachem addresses sampling and preparation as possible contributors to measurement uncertainty. Ask whether a reported uncertainty covers laboratory analysis alone or also sampling. A precise measurement cannot automatically compensate for an unsuitable sample.
Editorial guidance, not individual legal advice, laboratory services or product release. No review by an external laboratory is claimed.
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