Acrylamide in refined food is a growing and serious concern among international health authorities. Zeracryl AS in Norway collaborated with the Norwegian fry manufacturer Hoff SA to develop a new solution to reduce the development of unacceptably high acrylamide level in potato fries during processing. The project has also been supported by the Norwegian Research Council as well as Innovation Norway. The CEO of Zeracryl AS, Trond Thomassen, calls the product and process “quite suitable and robust”, saying that thorough industrial testing of the product has given excellent results.
“The process inhibits the acrylamide formation reaction between sugar and asparagine at high temperatures and reduces the acrylamide by 50–70 %,” Thomassen explains. The process is said to provide a more stable color to several potato processing varieties. He says the process itself as well as the ingredients used have no influence on the taste of the finished processed products. According to Thomassen the solution is economically affordable, and the patent owner Zeracryl will soon provide it to licenced companies for commercial application. He says the product makes it possible for grocery retailers, hotels, restaurants and the catering segment to provide consumers a healthier and safer French fry product. See www.zeracryl.com for more information.