Mitigation of furan and its derivatives in vegetable-based infant foods by combining high-pressure thermal processing and home practices

Abstract

There is a need for mitigation strategies for furan and its derivatives in infant foods. In this regard, this study aimed to assess the effect of alternative industrial thermal processes such as High Pressure Thermal Processing (HPTP), alone or combined with mitigation strategies based on home practices, on furan and its derivatives in vegetable-based infant meals. In a first step, the quality of measurements undertaken using SHS-GC-Q Exactive-Orbitrap-MS was validated considering linearity, quantification limits and recoveries. In a second step, the effect of HPTP at 600 MPa, 115 °C for 10 min on concentration of furan, 2-methylfuran (2-MF) and 3-methylfuran (3-MF) was assessed in lab-scale (5 g) and pilot-scale (300 g) samples of vegetable with meat (VM) infant meal. For lab-scale samples (5 g), mitigation rates up to 97.8 %, 75.8 % and 62.4 % were achieved for furan, 2-MF and 3-MF, respectively. For pilot-scale samples (300 g), mitigation rates of up to 91.9 % and 49.2 % were achieved for furan and 2-MF while no significant effect was shown for 3-MF. According to the Margin Of Exposure approach, the risk related to furan and total furan was ruled out when HPTP was applied on lab-scale samples, but it remained significant with pilot-scale samples, probably due to the longer preheating time requested. In a third step, a combination of HPTP with stirring during home reheating followed by post-reheating stirring in a bowl was investigated on pilot-scale samples. The use of these home practices reduced the concentration of furan, 2-MF and 3-MF by 72.8 %, 52.4 % and 48.9 % respectively, which allowed to rule out the risk related to furan and total furan in VM meal. Finally, a suspect screening approach implemented on the SHS-GC-Q Exactive-Orbitrap data, revealed the presence of 2-ethyl-, 2-butyl- and 2-pentyl-furan in the VM meal with mitigation trend similar to that of furan, 2-MF and 3-MF, either for lab- or pilot-scale samples when HPTP was combined with home practices. The interest of combining mild processes and home practices for the mitigation of furan and its derivatives is discussed.