Managing Acrylamide at the Agricultural Stage: Variety Selection, Crop Management, and the Prospects for Solving the Acrylamide Problem Through Plant Breeding and Biotechnology

Acrylamide is a processing contaminant that forms from free asparagine and reducing sugars, such as glucose, fructose and maltose, during high-temperature cooking and processing. Fried, baked and roasted potato, cereal and coffee products are the major sources of dietary intake. The Maillard reaction, which produces acrylamide, also gives rise to the colors, flavors and aromas associated with fried, baked and roasted foods. Acrylamide is a probable (Group 2a) human carcinogen and the European Food Safety Authority has expressed its concern regarding the possible neoplastic effects of dietary intake. This led the European Commission to propose tighter regulations on the presence of acrylamide in food. There is evidence that the most effective measures to reduce acrylamide formation in food by modifying processes and improving quality control have already been implemented, and further substantial reductions may not be achievable without a step change in the acrylamide-forming potential of crop products. This chapter describes the work that has been done to identify low acrylamide-forming varieties of potato, wheat and rye, define the crop management measures that can be taken to mitigate the problem, and elucidate the genetic control of acrylamide-forming potential. It also describes the progress that has been made in reducing the acrylamide-forming potential of potato by genetic modification, and the potential for further improvement in all affected crops using modern plant breeding and biotechnology techniques.