OCCURRENCE AND PRODUCTION OF FURAN IN COMMERCIAL FOODS

Main Article Content

serena santonicola http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3341-8000

Keywords

Baby Food, Food safety, Furan

Abstract

Furan (C4H4O) is a compound classified as "possibly carcinogenic to humans" by International Agency for Research on Cancer. As precursors, ascorbic acid, unsaturated fatty acids, amino acids and carbohydrates have been suggested to induce furan formation. Human exposure occurs mainly through the consume of coffee, canned foods and Baby food. Average intake of  furan is 1.5 µg/day for children aged 4-6 years and 27 µg/day for adults. Currently no limits for furan in food were fixed by European legislation. Since the carcinogenicity of furan, levels in food should be kept as low as reasonably achievable. 

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