To develop a fluoremetric method for rapid screening of fluorescent whitening agents (FWAs) in food packaging paper.MethodsSamples were extracted by ethanol-water (1∶4, V/V) for three times, and the extracts were detected by fluorescence spectrophotometer with the excitation wavelength at 350nm and the emission wavelength at 430nm. C.I.220was used as the standard for quantification. ResultsC.I.220had a good relativity (r=0.9997) within the range of 12.5-400ng/ml and the limit of quantification (LOQ) of this method was 1.2μg/g. Mean recoveries were 84.4%-90.9% at three added levels (1.5,2.5and 6.0μg/g).ConclusionThis method was fast, simple, reliable and could be applied for screening of FWAs in food packaging papers.