Elimination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from smoked sausages by migration into polyethylene packaging

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Polish Traditionally and Industrially Smoked Meats as an Element of Monitoring and PAH Reduction Strategies

This work aimed to analyze the PAH content in products smoked in traditional smokehouses with direct and indirect heat sources and in an industrial way as an element of PAH content monitoring in Polish market products. This research material comprised 12 smoked meats (W) and 38 sausages (K), medium or coarsely minced. The content of benzo(a)pyrene and the total content of four marker PAHs was determined by GC-MS. The analysis showed a significantly higher level of PAH contamination in products smoked using traditional methods. The results also indicate that the natural casing is not a barrier against PAH contamination during traditional smoking, and a higher degree of meat fragmentation, together with a small cross-section, increases the PAH content in this technological group. Concentrations of benzo(a)pyrene exceeding the permissible levels were found in the sausages smoked for more than 60 min. As part of the strategies for reducing the PAH content, among others, changing the furnace to an indirect one, shortening the time, lowering the smoking temperature, using artificial casings or removing casings before consumption, drying the product surface before the smoking process, using seasoned and bark-free wood, as well as additional smokehouse equipment, are recommended.

Levels, enrichment characteristics, and health risks of halogenated and parent polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in traditional smoked pork

Chinese traditional smoked pork was contaminated with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and chlorinated and brominated PAHs (ClPAHs and BrPAHs; XPAHs) during the smoking process. Therefore, our study investigated the concentrations, enrichment characteristics, and health risks associated with PAHs, as well as ClPAHs and BrPAHs in Chinese traditional smoked pork. The total concentrations of PAHs, ClPAHs and BrPAHs in traditional smoked pork ranged from 90.0 to 79200 ng/g fat weight (fw), 23.6-2340 pg/g fw and 0.550-200 pg/g fw, respectively, which were significantly higher than their levels found in raw pork. Additionally, the concentrations of PAHs and XPAHs in the surface of smoked pork were higher than those in the inner parts. High-ring PAHs exhibited a greater enrichment compared to low-ring PAHs, and BrPAHs exhibited greater enrichment ability than ClPAHs in smoked pork. Furthermore, the ability of individual congeners to migrate from the surface to the inner parts of the smoked pork were varied. When the smoking fuels were similar, a longer smoking time resulted in higher concentrations of PAHs and XPAHs in smoked pork, while casing effectively reduced their concentrations. The correlation between XPAH and parent PAH concentrations indicated that chlorination of PAHs was one of the primary formation mechanisms of some monochlorinated PAHs. Over half of the smoked pork samples posed a potential carcinogenic risk, particularly the surface samples. It is recommended to remove the surface parts when consuming smoked pork and to improve traditional smoking methods to mitigate the health risks.

Decrease in Aflatoxin M1 Concentration in Milk during Cholesterol Removal by Application of β-Cyclodextrin

Approximately one-third of humankind is chronically exposed to the carcinogenic aflatoxin M1 contained in milk. As β-cyclodextrin is frequently used in the food industry, its effect on aflatoxin M1 concentration was investigated during cholesterol removal from milk due to the similarity among the physicochemical properties of aflatoxin M1 and cholesterol. Moreover, the elimination of cholesterol using β-cyclodextrin has been successfully applied in many studies without any substantial effect on the quality of the treated milk. Therefore, milk samples were spiked with aflatoxin M1 within the range from 0.20 to 2.00 µg/kg, and cholesterol removal was carried out by 2.0% (w/w) β-cyclodextrin addition, as this concentration is enough for the sufficient removal of cholesterol. It was found that the mean cholesterol concentration decreased by 92.3%, while the aflatoxin M1 concentration decreased to 0.53 ± 0.04 µg/kg, i.e., by 39.1% after treatment (n = 2). This mitigation procedure itself is easy and inexpensive and thus is fully applicable with a high potential for complete decontamination of aflatoxin M1 milk. This method will therefore considerably improve the food safety issues associated with aflatoxin M1 presence in milk and dairy products.

Concentrations, influencing factors, risk assessment methods, health hazards and analyses of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in dairies: a review

The occurrence of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in dairies has been widely reported. Consumers may be overly exposed to PAHs through dairies causing health risks. Hazards can be reduced by controlling influencing factors in the full-chain of dairy production. This review briefly introduces research trends and analytical methods concerning PAHs in dairies. Additionally, this review discusses influencing factors of PAH concentrations in various dairies to avoid PAHs' formation and accumulation during manufacture. Relevant regulations are referred to and the reported risk assessment methods are summarized. Furthermore, indicators of health risks including TEQBaP, the number and the rate of over-standard are calculated based on PAH concentrations. Through analyses, we find PAH and BaP contamination in dairies are complex problems depending on environment, processing and storage. There was a significant correlation between fat contents and PAH concentrations. Results of infant formula in certain research were worrying and those of smoked cheeses are remarkably high indicating the dangerous smoking process. It is significant to monitor PAHs and calculate TEQBaP from meadows to feeders. Moreover, the existing regulations are insufficient and need strengthening. The data and discussions in this review contribute to worldwide Big Data, further scientific investigation and regulations for PAHs in dairies.

Formation and mitigation of PAHs in barbecued meat - a review

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) are chemicals, which can occur in barbecued or grilled foods, and particularly in meats. They originate from incomplete combustion of the heat source, pyrolysis of organic compounds, or fat-induced flame formation. This review therefore summarizes relevant parameters for mitigation of especially carcinogenic PAHs in barbecued meat. Consumption of PAHs increases the risk of cancer, and thus the relevance for the mitigation of PAHs formation is very high for barbecued meat products. Parameters such as heat source, barbecue geometry, and meat type as well as marinating, adding spices, and other antioxidants reduce the final benzo[a]pyrene and PAHs concentrations and minimize the exposure. Overall, mitigation of carcinogenic PAHs from barbecuing includes removal of visual charring, reducing fat pyrolysis by minimizing dripping from the meat onto the heat source, the use of acidic marinades or choosing leaner cuts of meat. Estimation of human exposure to barbecued meat, includes several challenges such as substantial differences in barbecuing frequencies and practices, heat sources and meat types used for grilling.

Heterocyclic aromatic amine level and quality characteristics of selected Harbin red sausages in the northern Chinese market

The heterocyclic aromatic amine (HAA) level and quality characteristics of selected Harbin red sausages in the northern Chinese market and the possible differences between traditional sausages and conventional sausages were evaluated in this study. Four varieties of traditional sausages and four varieties of conventional sausages were selected. Compared to conventional sausages, traditional sausages had lower moisture content and higher hardness (P < 0.05). Twelve HAAs were evaluated and eight HAAs were detected. The total HAA content was as high as 360.73 ng/g. In particular, the contents of Norharman and Harman were much higher than those of the other HAAs (P < 0.05). Additionally, the HAA contents were higher in the traditional sausages than those in the conventional sausages (P < 0.05). Principal component analysis showed that traditional and conventional sausages had a good separation based on the quality characteristics and total HAA level. The results of this study will provide useful information on the industrial production of smoked meat products.

Sensory Changes and Listeria monocytogenes Behavior in Sliced Cured Pork Loins during Extended Storage

Cured pork loins are sausages with a production tradition in several regions worldwide. They are made from one of the noblest cuts of pork, and for this reason cured loins are one of the most expensive pork meat products. Establishing the correct shelf life allows products to be accepted by the consumer, and to avoid the costs associated with shorter shelf lives. The aim of this study is: (1) to establish proper shelf life by evaluating the willingness of participants to consume and the sensory modifications that occur during prolonged storage via Check All That Apply (CATA) questions; and (2) to study the behavior of Listeria monocytogenes through a microbial challenge test. Sliced cured pork loins can be stored at 6 ± 1 °C for 105 days while maintaining a consumer acceptance of more than 75%. The freshness loss was associated mainly with a decrease in aromatic notes (particularly the smoke and cured aroma), and with the appearance of spoiled characteristics, specifically a sour/vinegar aroma and acidic taste that were detected by a reduced proportion of participants. The freshness evaluation was positively influenced by the typical characteristics of cured products, such as color and a garlic and wine aroma. Sour/vinegar aroma and acidic taste were the attributes most associated with higher freshness penalization. During the period of the test, Listeria monocytogenes inoculated onto the cured loin slices did not grow.

Insight about methods used for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons reduction in smoked or grilled fishery and meat products for future re-engineering: A systematic review

This paper presents methods of reduction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in grilled or smoked meat and fishery products. Using keywords such as "smoking", "grilling", "processing", "roasting", "barbecue", "curing", "reduction", "decrease", "polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon", "benzo(a)pyrene", "removal", 1191 references were collected from databases. After sorting, only 37 appeared to be relevant to the topic of the review. These 37 papers were coded with one or two keywords representing methods of PAHs reduction using R-based Qualitative Data Analysis library. The results showed that PAHs reduction strategies can be applied either before (or during) grilling or smoking (barrier methods) or after grilling or smoking (removal methods). Before grilling or smoking, use of marinade, preheating of products, appropriate fuel (poor in lignin), filter, collection system of juice and fat (to avoid them dripping into embers) are the main strategies which can be applied. After grilling or smoking, the methods consist of washing the surface of smoked or grilled products with hot water (60 °C) or storing smoked products packed into low density or high density polyethylene. A flowchart regrouping methods which can be used individually or in combination for PAHs reduction in smoked meat and fishery products is suggested.

Encapsulation of Cinnamon Essential Oil for Active Food Packaging Film with Synergistic Antimicrobial Activity

Porous adsorption, a less powerful adsorptive force than chemical bonds, is based on the physical adsorption of small molecules onto a solid surface that is capable of adsorbing gas or liquid molecules. Antimicrobial permutite composite (containing Ag⁺, Zn²⁺ and Ag⁺/Zn²⁺), starting from Linde Type A-permutite (LTA), was obtained in this research. The permutite samples were characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), colorimeter and nitrogen adsorption technique. Cinnamon essential oil (CEO) was encapsulated into Ag⁺/Zn²⁺-permutite. The FT-IR and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) confirmed that no chemical bond existed between CEO and Ag⁺/Zn²⁺-permutite. The loading capacity of Ag⁺/Zn²⁺-permutite/CEO was 313.07 µL/g, and it had a sustained release effect. The Ag⁺/Zn²⁺-permutite/CEO showed stronger efficacy against Aspergillus niger and Penicillium sp. than Ag⁺/Zn²⁺-permutite. Ethyl cellulose pads modified by composite antimicrobial particles were applied in the preservation of Chinese bayberry. Compared to the control group, treatment with the Ag⁺/Zn²⁺-permutite/CEO antimicrobial pads resulted in a significantly lower decay incidence. In addition, the amount of migrated silver, zinc and aluminum from LTA was below the legal limit. These results confirmed that the ethyl cellulose pads modified by the Ag⁺/Zn²⁺-permutite/CEO provided an active packaging to control decay of fresh Chinese bayberry.

Modern Procedures for Removal of Hazardous Compounds From Foods

This chapter deals with interactions between foods or food additives and plastic package materials oriented to elimination of hazardous compounds from foods. As found, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) can be effectively eliminated from liquid smoke flavors and smoked meat products by migration of PAHs into low-density polyethylene (LDPE), when the limiting factor of the elimination is diffusion in food matrix. After leaving food bulk, PAHs migrate deeper into LDPE bulk what brings about permanent renewal of material imbalance on LDPE/food matrix interface that maintains the migration process in an intensive regime causing extensive lowering of PAH content in food matrix. To the opposite, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) in contact with vegetable oils is able to absorb only PAHs on active center deposited on its surface without deeper migration into plastic bulk and therefore this type of elimination process is less effective. Overall, migration processes are affected by polarity of food matrix and package materials, presence of compounds able to compete for adsorption center on PET surface, the time of interactions, and, of course, imbalance of PAH chemical potentials in individual systems.

Assessing contamination of smoked sprats (Sprattus sprattus) with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and changes in its level during storage in various types of packaging

The analysis of material used in this study demonstrated that the amount of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in smoked sprats varies from the level below the lowest detection limit in muscles up to 9.99 µg kg^-1 of benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) in fish skin. Such a high level of PAHs in skin was reported only in one of six batches of sprats, while mean BaP level was at 1.69 µg kg^-1. Regardless such a high BaP level in skin, its concentration in muscles did not exceed the maximum acceptable level. The study objective was to assess to what extent packaging materials adsorb PAH compounds from food. Changes in the PAH levels were monitored in fish during their storage in packages made of various materials. The storage time was from 0 to 168 hours. The obtained results varied considerably, therefore their scatter did not allow to confirm unequivocally the preliminary hypothesis about the reduction of PAHs due to their migration to packaging material. However, analysis of the packaging used in this study demonstrated a significant increase in the level of total 16 PAHs. When high-density polyethylene (HDPE) packaging was analysed, a six-fold increase in the total 16 PAHs was observed comparing to the blank sample.