Assessment of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural levels in carbonated soft drinks and milk products on the markets in the Kumasi Metropolis of Ghana

Processing of food products makes them palatable, edible, provides options to consumers and prolong their life spans. Irrespective of these benefits, some of these processes have also shown to increase the build-up of potential toxic metabolites, for example, 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (5-HMF). 5-HMF production results from caramelization and/or Maillard reactions involving carbohydrates and some proteins. Its levels are thus used as an indicator of thermal treatment and suitability of storage conditions. At significantly, higher levels in products, they have been shown to elicit deleterious effects on consumers. The current study was carried out to monitor the levels of 5-HMF in carbonated soft drinks (CSDs) and milk products (MPs) on the market as their consumptions have increased in recent years. Using a validated spectrophotometric method, it was shown that 5-HMF levels in MPs ranged between 1.165 ± 0.007 g/L and 2.638 ± 0.010 g/L and that in the CSDs was between 0.0294 ± 0.00018 g/l and 0.0845 ± 0.00049 g/L. However, the estimated 5-HMF exposure levels from the consumption of these products were shown to be within internationally acceptable limits of 0.005 g/L – 0.15 g/L. The 5-HMF levels observed however demonstrated differences in the two types of products analysed, differences in different brands of similar products, batch-to-batch variations for same brands, and differences in products from different origins. These observations may be indicative of inconsistencies in applicable industrial processing systems. The outcome of this study calls for the need to appraise existing processing systems, to assure reproducible quality products.