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Brandon Crisp, Austin
FDA issues acrymalide warning in the US
The US Food and Drug Administration
released draft guidance in late 2013
with recommendations to growers,
manufacturers and food service
operators to reduce acrylamide in
certain foods. Acrylamide is a chemical
that forms in plant-based foods –
including potatoes, coffee, cereals,
breads, crackers and dried fruits
– during high-temperature cooking
processes like frying, roasting and
baking.
Scientists only discovered acrylamide
in foods in 2002, so research on
the chemical is relatively new. The
FDA states that ‘acrylamide forms
in foods from a chemical reaction
between asparagine, an amino acid,
and reducing sugars such as glucose
and fructose. This reaction is part of
the Maillard reaction, which leads to
color, flavor, and aroma changes in
cooked foods.’ According to the Grocery
Manufacturers Association, acrylamide
is found in 40 per cent of the calories
consumed in the average American diet.
In 2010, the joint FAO/World Health
Organization expert committee on food
additives concluded that acrylamide
may be a human health concern. High
doses of acrylamide were found to
cause cancer in animals and some
scientists believe that it may be a
carcinogen for humans as well. Some
critics have come out in defence of the
Maillard reaction and brown foods.
Dr John LaPuma, the head of Chef
Clinic in California, told the Wall Street
Journal that ‘the amount of acrylamide
you need to cause cancer in people is
astronomical’.
12 Norton Rose Fulbright – February 2014
In 2005, the California attorney
general sued several companies –
McDonald’s, Wendy’s, Frito-Lay,
Procter & Gamble and Heinz among
them – for selling potato chips and
French fries containing high levels of
acrylamide. Those lawsuits settled in
2008, while the FDA was still studying
the chemical. The industry saw an
uptick in acrylamide-related lawsuits
in response but there still appear to be
scientific gaps in a potential plaintiff’s
case. Accordingly, it is unclear what
consequences these recommendations
will have for companies that
manufacture and serve acrylamide
containing foods.
In addition to guidelines for food
producers, the FDA has included
suggestions for consumers on how to
reduce the amount of acrylamide they
consume. The agency has not called for
a ban nor has it said that people should
eliminate the chemical from their diets,
but it does say that there could be
benefits to cutting back and it includes
suggestions ranging from toasting
bread to a light brown (not dark) to not
storing potatoes in the fridge.
Brandon Crisp is an associate in Norton Rose
Fulbright’s Austin office in the United States.
Sources
‘Guidance for Industry: acrylamide in foods’ (draft paper),
Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, FDA,
November 2013
Available at: fda.gov/food/guidance&regulation
‘Atty. Gen. Brown Settles Potato Chip Lawsuit’, State of
California Department of Justice, Office of the Attorney
General, August 2008
Available at: oag.ca.gov/news
US Food and Drug Administration
Available at: fda.gov/food/foodborne illness&contaminants