Effect of temperature on the formation of acrylamide in cocoa beans during drying treatment: An experimental and computational study

Enhancing analysis of neo-formed contaminants in two relevant food global commodities: Coffee and cocoa

Neo-formed contaminants (NFCs) are common in many foods, especially those subjected to high-temperature processing. Among these contaminants, products arising from the Maillard reaction, sugar reduction, thermal degradation of polyphenols and lipid oxidation, including acrylamide, furan, furfuryl alcohol, and hydroxymethylfurfural, are consistently linked to potential neoplastic effects. NFCs are found in globally traded commodities like coffee and cocoa, posing a significant risk due to their frequent consumption by consumers. A direct correlation exists between consumption frequency, exposure levels, and health risks. Hence, it's crucial to establish reliable methods to determine levels in both matrices, aiming to mitigate their formation and minimise risks to consumers. This review offers a comprehensive examination, discussion, and identification of emerging trends and opportunities to enhance existing methodologies for extracting and quantifying NFCs in coffee and cocoa. By presenting an in-depth analysis of performance parameters, we aim to guide the selection of optimal extraction techniques for quantifying individual NFCs. Based on the reviewed data, headspace extraction is recommended for furan, while solid and dispersive solid phase extractions are preferred for acrylamide when quantified using gas and liquid chromatography, respectively. However, it is worth noting that the reported linearity tests for certain methods did not confirm the absence of matrix effects unless developed through standard addition, leading to uncertainties in the reported values. There is a need for further research to verify method parameters, especially for determining NFCs like furfuryl alcohol. Additionally, optimising extraction and separation methods is essential to ensure complete compound depletion from samples. Ideally, developed methods should offer comprehensive NFC determination, reduce analysis time and solvent use, and adhere to validation parameters. This review discusses current methods for extracting and quantifying NFCs in coffee and cocoa, highlighting emerging trends and emphasising the need to improve existing techniques, especially for compounds like furfuryl alcohol.

Quality Formation of Adzuki Bean Baked: From Acrylamide to Volatiles under Microwave Heating and Drum Roasting

Baked adzuki beans are rich in tantalizing odor and nutritional components, such as protein, dietary fiber, vitamin B, and minerals. To analyze the final quality of baked beans, the acrylamide and volatile formation of adzuki beans were investigated under the conditions of microwave baking and drum roasting. The results indicate that the acrylamide formation in baked adzuki beans obeys the exponential growth function during the baking process, where a rapid increase in acrylamide content occurs at a critical temperature and low moisture content. The critical temperature that leads to a sudden increase in acrylamide content is 116.5 °C for the moisture content of 5.6% (w.b.) in microwave baking and 91.6 °C for the moisture content of 6.1% (w.b.) in drum roasting. The microwave-baked adzuki beans had a higher formation of the kinetics of acrylamide than that of drum-roasted beans due to the microwave volumetric heating mode. The acrylamide content in baked adzuki beans had a significant correlation with their color due to the Maillard reaction. A color difference of 11.1 and 3.6 may be introduced to evaluate the starting point of the increase in acrylamide content under microwave baking and drum roasting, respectively. Heating processes, including microwave baking and drum roasting, for adzuki beans generate characteristic volatile compounds such as furan, pyrazine, ketone, alcohols, aldehydes, esters, pyrroles, sulfocompound, phenols, and pyridine. Regarding flavor formation, beans baked via drum roasting showed better flavor quality than microwave-baked beans.

Roasted Rye as a Coffee Substitute: Methods for Reducing Acrylamide

Acrylamide is assumed to be a potential carcinogen, and reference values have therefore been implemented in EU legislation. Thus, the food industry needs to reduce the acrylamide content in consumer products to the lowest possible value. In this study, roasted rye was evaluated for its suitability as a coffee substitution product with respect to its acrylamide content. The influence of process modifiers, free asparagine content, storage, and rye type on the final content of acrylamide was investigated. Changes in carbohydrate composition and brightness caused by the roasting process were described. Sample analysis was conducted via GC-MS and HPLC-CAD. Existing methods were adapted to roasted rye as the sample matrix. CaCl₂ and asparaginase treatment as well as pH adjustments prior to roasting did not prove to reduce the acrylamide content. A significantly (* p < 0.027) lower free asparagine content in the raw material resulted in a lower formation of acrylamide in the final product. The acrylamide content significantly decreased (**** p < 0.0001) after 3 (1100 ± 18 µg kg⁻¹) and 6 (490 ± 7 µg kg⁻¹) months of long-term storage. Only samples stored for 6 months (490 ± 7 µg kg⁻¹) met the EU acrylamide content requirements (<500 µg kg⁻¹) for grain-based coffee substitution products.