Industrially applicable strategies for mitigating acrylamide, furan, and 5-hydroxymethylfurfural in food.

Acrylamide and furanic compounds, such as furan and 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), are formed in a variety of heat-treated commercial foods. They are known to be toxic and, according to the International Agency for Research on Cancer, "possibly carcinogenic to humans". As this gave rise to concern, research was carried out to study their metabolism and toxicity and elucidate the mechanistic pathways of formation. So far, many papers have been published on acrylamide, furan, and HMF occurrence, precursors and mechanisms of formation, toxicity, and detection methods, as well as on possible routes to reduce their levels in food and, thus, consumer intake. This paper reviews the interventions suggested in the literature to mitigate the presence of acrylamide and furanic compounds in food. In particular, some technological measures potentially exploitable at the industrial level are discussed extensively. These are (i) preventive strategies based on the use of asparaginase and thermal input reduction (i.e., low temperature-long time dehydration; dielectric heating) and (ii) removal intervention by means of vacuum treatment, aimed to remove the already formed acrylamide and furanic compounds from the finished product.

Antioxidant properties of ready-to-drink coffee brews.

The influence of some technological variables on the changes of the antioxidant capacity of ready-to-drink coffee brews was investigated. Results showed that, depending on the roasting degree as well as on the packaging conditions adopted, redox reactions, which can take place during storage, are responsible for significant changes in the overall antioxidant capacity of the product. In particular, the redox potential of air-packaged coffee brews, obtained from light- and medium-roasted beans, showed maximum values after 2 days of storage, which corresponded to a minimum in the chain-breaking activity, while, in the case of the dark-roasted sample packaged under ordinary atmosphere, both the redox potential and the chain-breaking activity showed a maximum around 2-3 days of storage. In contrast, in the absence of oxygen, the coffee brews maintained the initial reducing properties over all the storage time, although the radical-scavenging activity values changed in a way very similar to that of the air-packaged sample. These results suggested that the changes in the antioxidant properties of the coffee brews may be attributed to a further development of the Maillard reaction during storage.

Effect of kilning on the antioxidant and pro-oxidant activities of pale malts.

Pale malts were prepared using standard and rapid kilning regimes that differed in the temperature and moisture profiles in the kiln. Samples were taken over the last 9 h of kilning, that is, at 18, 20, 22, 25, and 27 h. Antioxidant activity, assessed by redox potential, scavenging of the 2,2'-azinobis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) radical cation (ABTS*+), and ferric reducing/antioxidant power (FRAP), increased at moisture levels below 6.7% for both regimes. The 27 h malt exposed to the rapid regime (moisture content of 4.8%) had a higher activity than the 27 h standard regime sample (moisture content of 4.8%). None of the malts scavenged oxygen. Pro-oxidant activity profiles were different for the malts obtained using each regime and, at 27 h, the rapid procedure gave malt with higher activity. Levels of (+)-catechin and ferulic acid (the most abundant phenolic compounds identified) generally increased as the moisture content of malt fell below 6.7%. Differences in antioxidant and pro-oxidant activities of the 27 h malts are partly attributed to the Maillard reaction, as evidenced by lower L* and higher b* values and higher levels of Maillard-derived flavor compounds, in the sample obtained by the rapid procedure. Levels of lipid-derived flavor compounds were significantly higher after 27 h of kilning using the rapid procedure.