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15.03.2023 - Foods

Increased levels of acrylamide in vegetable chips and blackened olives

Acrylamide is formed during the processing of starchy foods by frying, baking, or roasting at over 120 °C and low moisture. The formation of acrylamide from reducing sugars and amino acids (mainly asparagine) is based on the so-called Maillard reaction. This non-enzymatic browning reaction is particularly typical for products like potato chips, French fries, bread, cookies, and coffee.

The acrylamide content of foods should be reduced as much as possible because a carcinogenic and mutagenic effect cannot be ruled out.

In official monitoring studies (2021) on acrylamide, vegetable chips and black olives in particular exhibited increased acrylamide levels. The derived benchmark level of 750 µg/kg for potato chips was exceeded by more than half (51.9%) of the 77 vegetable chip samples examined. The black olives had a median (290 µg/kg) significantly increased acrylamide content compared to the acrylamide median of untreated green and black olives (11 µg/kg and 23 µg/kg, respectively).

In our Tentamus laboratories, we conduct acrylamide investigations.

If you have any questions, our customer advisors are very happy to assist you.

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