The Maillard Reaction in Powdered Infant Formula

Abstract

Powdered infant formulas are manufactured by dissolving dried ingredients in water or skimmed milk, which is then followed by pasteurization, homogenization, concentration in a vacuum evaporator and drying in spray dryer. Due to this large number of thermal processes, the formulas are subject to a series of reactions that can negatively impact their quality, among them the Maillard reaction. It is the result of chemical reactions between a carbonyl group of the reducing sugar and a free amino group of the protein or amino acid. During prolonged heating or storage of the powdered infant formula, a wide variety of reactive compounds are formed, which can then polymerize with protein residues and form dark pigments or melanoidins. The Maillard reaction is affected by several factors including pH, temperature, water activity, type of reducing sugar and presence of metals. It can result in numerous consequences, such as: an unavailability of amino acids, solubility loss, increase the allergenicity of certain proteins, and even impediment of mineral absorption. Much research is still needed to understand the consequences of the Maillard reaction in powdered infant formulas in order to find solutions that provide foods with high nutritional properties and are safe for the consumer.

Oxidative Quality of Dairy Powders: Influencing Factors and Analysis

“…This reaction can occur at room temperature, but is optimal at much higher temperatures (140-165 • C). The Maillard reaction has been identified as a main factor in quality deterioration of IMF [37]. However, in whey protein concentrate (WPC) and whey protein isolate (WPI), Maillard reaction products contribute to a lesser extent to flavour formation than LO [38,39].…”

Stability of powdered infant formula during secondary shelf-life and domestic practices

“…In fact, a large number of thermal processes are needed in PIF manufacturing, thus the formulas are already subjected to a series of degradation reactions during production. Exactly, the heating treatments during the manufacturing processes favour the initiation of Maillard reaction and lipid peroxidation; the Maillard reaction also leads to volatile compound formation from Strecker degradations (Nunes et al, 2019); peroxidation of unsaturated fatty acids form a complex mixtures of secondary oxidation products such as aldehydes, ketones, etc. (Romeu-Nadal, Castellote & Lopez-Sabater, 2004).…”

“…Instability can result during the production steps, such as pasteurisation, spray-drying, and sterilisation, particularly on account of the high amount of carbohydrates and proteins, the addition of lysine-rich proteins or polyunsaturated fatty acids. Lipid oxidation and Maillard reactions are the main causes of deterioration during processing and storage that can lead to loss of nutritional value and to the formation of furan and furan derivatives (Nunes, Martins, Perrone, & de Carvalho, 2019;Sabater et al, 2018); these have been classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC, 2019) as possibly carcinogenic for humans (Group 2B); moreover, EFSA (2010) reported furan levels above 100 μg kg -1 in coffee and baby food (Condurso, Cincotta, & Verzera, 2018).…”

“…Aliphatic aldehydes, such as pentanal, hexanal (lipid peroxidation) (Cheng et al, 2017) and furan derivatives (Maillard reactions) (Nunes et al, 2019) have been used as markers for PIF shelflife prediction (Chávez-Servín, de la Torre Carbot, García-Gasca, Castellote, & López-Sabater, 2015).…”

Evaluation of Roasting Effect on Selected Green Tea Volatile Flavor Compound and Pyrazine Content by HS-SPME GC-MS

“…The desirable flavor of Hojicha, mainly defined as "roasty", is due to the formation of pyrazines [5,7,8], however, the changes in the odorant composition also contribute to the characteristic aroma. Pyrazines and acrylamide are commonly generated via the Maillard reaction during the roasting process, giving roasted green tea a strong odor [9]. On the other hand, the high demand for green tea is also due to the presence of bioactive substances, mainly catechins, hence the Hojicha pan-firing process should be optimized to avoid catechin degradation [10,11] and high levels of acrylamide, which is probably carcinogenic to humans [12], without compromising the quality.…”