HEALTH RISKS FROM TOXIC CONTAMINANTS FORMED DURING THE PROCESSING OF VEGETABLE OILS AND FATS

Abstract

The purpose of this review was to summarize current research findings and unify ideas regarding methods to reduce the health risks to consumers posed by toxic contaminants, such as chloropropanols, glycidols, and their esters, which are formed during food processing, particularly during the refining of vegetable oils and fats, thereby critically impacting food safety. The review describes various aspects related to the occurrence of foodborne toxicants, it covers hazard characterization, their formation mechanisms, and control and regulatory strategies developed in recent years by the World Health Organization, the European Union Commission, and the Food and Agriculture Organization. Additionally, it concludes with an analysis of factors that favor the formation of toxic contaminants in food and discusses some methods for mitigating and monitoring the concentrations of precursors in raw materials. The material is also addressed to researchers, nutritionists and specialists in the domestic food industry, who should pay more attention to the health risk posed by oil and fat processing contaminants and methods of their removal from the raw material.

Keywords

• chlorinated propanols
• glycidols
• hazard characterization
• mitigation strategy
• oil refining