Quality enhancement of potato chips through acrylamide mitigation and comparison with local potato chips in Bangladesh

Potato chips are popular and frequently consumed ready-to-eat food in the world. Acrylamide is a possible carcinogenic and neurotoxic compound formed in potato chips during heat processing, a public health concern. This study aimed to develop potato chips to mitigate acrylamide formation, followed by Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidelines with some modifications. A total of 15 local chip samples were collected by a stratified random sampling method and were assessed for nutritional values, sensory attributes, microbial quality, and acrylamide levels. Acrylamide was extracted from potato chips using a novel activated charcoal method, then determined by the High- Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) method and showed that only 40% of local potato chips were above the benchmark level established by the EU 2017/2158 (750 ppb) (parts per billion) and ranged from 461 ppb to 2129 ppb while in the developed chips it was not detected. The microbial results showed that the developed chips are safe according to Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution (BSTI) standard, while the local chips contain total viable count (TVC) (>104 ) and yeast-mold count in a significant amount (>103 ). Sensory evaluation results showed that the developed potato chip samples had high ratings for all the evaluated attributes. From the nutritional point of view, fat content is lower while protein and fiber content is higher in developed potato chips. Moisture content is significantly higher in local potato chips than in developed potato chips, which is the major concern for microbial quality. As a result of the study's findings, acrylamide formation in potato chips was successfully mitigated by adhering to FDA modification guidelines without compromising quality, despite the fact that many locally produced potato chips are unfit for human consumption.