Acrylamide (AA) has been reported to be a neurotoxin, causing degenerative nerve changes via chronic oral intake, and a possible carcinogen to humans, classified in Group 2A by the International Agency for Research on Cancer.
Moreover, the formation of AA has been previously reported in a wide variety of fried and baked potato products.
Thus, it has raised significant health concerns with respect to the AA content in potato food supplies (WHO, 2002).
From a mechanistic standpoint, the formation pathways of AA during the frying of potatoes are very complex and not well understood: the Maillard reaction between amino acids and carbohydrates, mainly asparagine and reducing sugars, has been recognised as the most probable process for producing AA at frying temperatures greater than 120 C.
The factors affecting the amount of AA formed in French fries mainly depend on the composition of raw potatoes, such as asparagine, reducing sugars and moisture content, as well as frying process conditions such as temperature, time and pH