Acrylamide in potato chips

Acrylamide is a chemical used primarily as a building block in making polyacrylamide and acrylamide co-polymers. Polyacrylamide and acrylamide co-polymers are used in many industrial processes, such as the production of paper, dyes, and plastics, and in the treatment of drinking water and wastewater, including sewage. They are also found in consumer products, such as caulking, food packaging, and some adhesives.

Trace amounts of acrylamide generally remain in these products. Researchers in

Europe and the United States have found acrylamide in certain foods that were heated to a temperature above 120 degrees Celsius (248 degrees Fahrenheit), but not in foods prepared below this temperature. Potato chips and French fries were found to contain higher levels of acrylamide compared with other foods. The World Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations stated that the levels of acrylamide in foods pose a “major concern” and that more research is needed to determine the risk of dietary acrylamide exposure.

Asparagine is an amino acid (a building block of proteins) that is found in many vegetables, with higher concentrations in some varieties of potatoes. When heated to high temperatures in the presence of certain sugars, asparagine can form acrylamide.

High temperature cooking methods, such as frying, baking, or broiling,

have been found to produce acrylamide, while boiling and microwaving appear less likely to do so. Longer cooking times can also increase acrylamide production when the cooking temperature is above 120 degrees Celsius. Consumption habits indicate that the acrylamide levels in the studied heated foods could lead to a daily intake of a few tens of micrograms.

The Metrohm Ion Chromatography method to detect acrylamide in potato chips on simple ion chromatography followed by UV detection makes analysis simple and does not involve any higher instrumentation levels. Keep it simple and straight !!!!

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Author?? K. Niranjan, Product Manager - Ion Chromatography, Metrohm India Private Limited