Testing of other contaminants

Acrylamide is a toxicant that occurs via natural processes in the food, during frying or baking at high temperatures. It occurs via the Maillard reactions – a set of chemical reactions between amino acids and sugars such as glucose, fructose and lactose.

The heat launches a series of changes that result in browning of the food and the formation of a characteristic flavor and aroma. The amount of acrylamide that will develop in the food is influenced by several factors such as the type of food, temperature and the time of exposure to high temperatures. In general, foods which contain a large amount of starch and which are prepared at a high temperature for longer contain the most acrylamide. Also, foods rich with the amino acid asparagine may contain high levels of acrylamide after preparation, because it has shown that this amino acid is easily transformed into an acrylamide because of its similar chemical structure.

The maximum permitted level of acrylamides in foods has not been prescribed yet. The Commission Recommendation from November 8th 2013 on testing levels of acrylamide in foods (2013/647/EU) delivers indicative values of acrylamide levels in foods.

Acrylamide is determined with the LC-MS/MS technique.

3-MCPD (3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol) is a contaminant which occurs as a product of the processing of food and which contains high levels of fat and salt, which are exposed to high temperatures during production. Apart from 3-MCPD, 2-MCPD and glycidyl fatty acids can also develop during production. The EU Regulation no. 1881/2006 defines the maximum permitted level of 3-MCPD in hydrolyzed vegetable proteins and soy sauce.

3-MCPD is determined in our laboratory with the GC-MS/MS technique.

Nitrates are contaminants whose increased value in food is the result of an intensive use of nitrogen fertilisers and livestock farming. Their increased concentration in the organism can lead to an increased production of nitrites in the digestive tract, as well as ultimately lead to the formation of cancer-causing nitrosamines.

The main source of nitrates in the human diet are leafy vegetables (spinach and lettuce).  The EU Regulation 1881/2006 defines their maximum permitted level in vegetables.

Nitrates are determined in our laboratory with the HPLC technique.