Risk assessment of glycoalkaloids in feed and food, in particular in potatoes and potato‐derived products

Abstract

The European Commission asked EFSA for a scientific opinion on the risks for animal and human health related to the presence of glycoalkaloids (GAs) in feed and food. This risk assessment covers edible parts of potato plants and other food plants containing GAs, in particular, tomato and aubergine. In humans, acute toxic effects of potato GAs (α‐solanine and α‐chaconine) include gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea. For these effects, the CONTAM Panel identified a lowest‐observed‐adverse‐effect level of 1 mg total potato GAs/kg body weight (bw) per day as a reference point for the risk characterisation following acute exposure. In humans, no evidence of health problems associated with repeated or long‐term intake of GAs via potatoes has been identified. No reference point for chronic exposure could be identified from the experimental animal studies. Occurrence data were available only for α‐solanine and α‐chaconine, mostly for potatoes. The acute dietary exposure to potato GAs was estimated using a probabilistic approach and applying processing factors for food. Due to the limited data available, a margin of exposure (MOE) approach was applied. The MOEs for the younger age groups indicate a health concern for the food consumption surveys with the highest mean exposure, as well as for the P95 exposure in all surveys. For adult age groups, the MOEs indicate a health concern only for the food consumption surveys with the highest P95 exposures. For tomato and aubergine GAs, the risk to human health could not be characterised due to the lack of occurrence data and the limited toxicity data. For horses, farm and companion animals, no risk characterisation for potato GAs could be performed due to insufficient data on occurrence in feed and on potential adverse effects of GAs in these species.

Overview of Recent Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometry-Based Methods for Natural Toxins Detection in Food Products

“…Within Solanacee plants, the highest levels of GAs are found in potatoes, eggplants and tomatoes, even though the glycoalkaloids of most relevance to food safety, specifically α-solanine and α-chaconine, are those occurring in the potato (i.e., tubers, peel, sprouts, berries, leaves and blossoms). Several factors including mechanical damage to the plant, adverse storage (i.e., low temperature and bright light) and processing conditions may produce a significant increase of GAs content in potatoes [ 12 ]. In humans, acute toxic effects of potato GAs due to α-solanine and α-chaconine ingestion at low dose include gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, while at higher doses more severe symptoms have been observed such as paralysis, neurological disorders, cardiac failure and coma [ 135 ].…”

“…The EFSA Contam Panel identified an intake level of 1 mg/kg bw per day of total potato GAs/kg as a reference point for the risk characterization following acute exposure. Furthermore, exposure to 3–6 mg/kg bw per day of total potato GAs is considered to be potentially lethal for humans [ 12 ]. To date, no maximum levels for GAs in food or feed have been established at EU level, even though some European countries (i.e., Hungary, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands, Austria, Germany) have national legislation or recommendations on the maximum limits of total GAs, mainly in potato and potato products [ 12 ].…”

“…The use of matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) has been also reported. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) methods have been also described for GAs screening in food commodities [ 12 ].…”

“…The reduction of risks related to the presence of natural toxins in food plays an essential role in protecting consumers. Indeed, WHO, together with the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), FAO and Codex Alimentarius Commission, have established maximum residue limits (MRLs) or recommendations for many of these natural toxins to control their occurrence in food [ 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 ]. To ensure a correct risk assessment evaluation and compliance with the current legislation, it is important to develop sensitive, selective and robust analytical methods to determine the occurrence of these natural toxins in foodstuffs.…”

Selection of Autochthonous LAB Strains of Unripe Green Tomato towards the Production of Highly Nutritious Lacto-Fermented Ingredients

“…Nevertheless, the content of tomato glycoalkaloids (SGAs), namely α-tomatin and dehydrotomatin, is higher in unripe than in ripe tomatoes (500 vs. 5 mg.kg −1 , respectively) [ 10 , 11 ]. Food valorisation of unripe green tomatoes must consider this potential health risk [ 12 ] for SGA levels above the 200 ppm limit [ 13 ].…”