WO2005094591A2

WO2005094591A2 - Reduction of acrylamide formation in coffee-based food processing

Info

Publication number: WO2005094591A2
Application number: PCT/GB2005/001244
Authority: WO
Inventors: Pernille Baardseth; Hans Blom; Grethe Enersen; Grete Skrede; Erik Slinde; Thea Sundt; Trond Thomassen
Original assignee: Forinnova As; Cockbain, Julian
Priority date: 2004-03-31
Filing date: 2005-03-31
Publication date: 2005-10-13
Also published as: WO2005094591A3; GB0407301D0

Abstract

The invention relates to the use of acid treatment of coffee-based foodstuffs to reduce acrylamide production in subsequent cooking thereof.

Description

84087.623 Reduction of Acrylamide Formation in Coffee-based Food Processing The present invention relates to improvements in and relating to cooked food, in particular vegetables which are fried, grilled, baked or roasted. In particular, the present invention relates to improvements in and relating to coffee. In a publication by the Swedish National Food Administration (see www.slv.se/engdefault.asp) it was reported that many cooked foods, in particular fried, grilled or baked foods, had surprisingly been found to contain high levels of the toxic contaminant acrylamide. No suggestion was made as to how the acrylamide context of such foods could be reduced. A further report of acrylamide production in food cooking occurred in Tareke et al . , J. Agric. Food Chem 50: 4998-5006 (2002) . We have now surprisingly found that the acrylamide content of cooked foods (e.g. coffee) can be reduced by treatment of the food prior to cooking with lactic acid generating microorganisms and/or with acid. Thus viewed from one aspect the invention provides use of a lactic acid producing microorganism and/or a physiologically acceptable acid for the treatment of a food material (e.g. coffee) to reduce acrylamide production in subsequent cooking ^• thereof . Viewed from a further aspect the invention provides the use of a lactic acid producing microorganism for the treatment of a food material (e.g. coffee) to reduce acrylamide production in subsequent cooking thereof . Viewed from yet a further aspect the invention provides a process for the reduction of acrylamide production in a food material (e.g. coffee) comprising treating the food material with a lactic acid producing microorganism. As used herein, the term "coffee" includes coffee and coffee beans in any form and any products derived therefrom, for example crushed or granulated coffee beans, dried instant coffees, liquid coffee extracts and frozen coffee extracts (e.g. freeze dried coffee extracts) . In particular, the term "coffee" may be understood to mean coffee beans in any form or any product derived therefrom.

Lactic acid producing microorganisms are well known and examples include lactic acid bacteria such as Bifidobacterium sp., Brevibacterium sp., Lactobacillus sp., Lactococcus sp., Leuconostoc sp., Micrococcus sp., Oenococcus sp., Pediococcus sp., and Streptococcus sp. Lactobacilli are especially preferred for use according to the invention, in particular Lactobacillus plantarum strains NCDO 1752 and NCDO 1193 (available from the National Collection of Food Bacteria) , Lactobacillus NCIMB 40450 and Lactobacillus plantarum NC8 (available from the Applicant) . Other strains of lactobacillus which generate lactic acid and are safe for use in foodstuff treatment have been described widely in the scientific literature. The treatment with a lactic acid producing microorganism according to the invention preferably involves incubation in an aqueous medium for up to 7 days, e.g. 30 minutes to 24 hours, especially 1 to 6 hours. Incubation is preferably at 4 to 45°C, e.g. 25 to 35°C, i.e. as is conventional for such microorganisms . Typically such treatment may involve homofermentative lactic acid bacteria incubation in an aqueous medium. Viewed from a further aspect the invention provides the use of a physiologically acceptable acid for the treatment of a food material (e.g. coffee) to reduce acrylamide production in subsequent cooking thereof . Viewed from a still further aspect the invention provides a process for the reduction of acrylamide in a food material (e.g. coffee) comprising treating the food material (e.g. coffee) with a physiologically tolerable acid. The physiologically tolerable acid used according to the invention may be any acid acceptable for use in foodstuffs, e.g. organic acids, such as citric, malic, acetic, maleic, tartaric, succinic and lactic acids or inorganic acids such as hydrochloric, sulphuric and phosphoric acids and sulphur dioxide. The use of citric and hydrochloric acids is especially preferred, as is the use of lactic acid and/or of phosphoric acid. For cereal or potato-based foodstuffs, the use of hydrochloric acid is especially preferred while for cereal-based products the use of lactic acid is particularly preferred. For coffee-based foodstuffs the use of lactic, citric, phosphoric and hydrochloric acid is particularly preferred. The acid is preferably used in a quantity and strength sufficient to reduce the surface pH of the food material treated (e.g. coffee) to 1 to 5.5, preferably 3 to 5 , especially about 4. Following acid treatment, the food material is preferably stored for up to 7 days (e.g. 30 minutes to 24 hours, especially 1 to 6 hours before cooking or f eezing. In this process, the acid is preferably used in the form of a buffer solution. Following treatment with the acid and/or the lactic acid producing microorganism, the food material (e.g. coffee) may be cooked using cooking techniques that expose the material to temperatures above 150°C, e.g. by baking, grilling, roasting or frying. Before such high temperature cooking, it is desirable to rinse the treated food material (e.g. coffee) with water. The cooking may be a single stage operation. However it may instead be one stage of a multi stage (e.g. two stage) cooking procedure. Thus the technique of the invention is especially applicable to food materials which are treated according to the invention, partially cooked, transported and/or stored, then cooked again. The food material treated according to the invention may be any carbohydrate-containing food material but especially preferably is a plant or plant- derived material, e.g. a vegetable or cereal, in particular a root vegetable or a tuber (e.g. potato) . Especially preferably the food material is potato, yam, onion, carrot, swede, turnip or parsnip. Particularly preferably, the food material is coffee or cocoa, especially coffee. Such food materials are preferably processed (e.g. peeled, diced, sliced, chipped or chopped) prior to treatment according to the invention. Where the food material is coffee, the processing preferably comprises splitting and/or crushing. The invention is also particularly applicable to products made from vegetable (e.g. potato) or cereal (e.g. rice, barley, wheat, rye, oat, maize, etc.) flours, granulates or fragments, in particular breads (especially crisp-breads, biscuits, wafers, cookies and crackers), cakes, snacks (e.g. crisps (in American- English chips) , pretzels, and the like) , breakfast cereals (e.g. "cornflakes" and the like), restructured french fries, potato-croquettes, and to granulated coffees and cocoas. Thus in a further aspect the invention provides a process for the production of a food product which comprises fermenting a granulated or crushed carbohydrate-containing plant material with a lactic acid producing microorganism, optionally formulating the fermented material into a shaped product (e.g. by extrusion, rolling or moulding a paste or dough) , and cooking to produce said food product . In a preferred aspect of the invention the granulated or crushed carbohydrate-containing plant material is a coffee-containing plant material. In a preferred aspect the invention provides the use of Lactobacillus plantarum NC8 for the treatment of coffee to reduce acrylamide production in subsequent cooking thereof . In a further preferred aspect the invention provides a process for the reduction of acrylamide production in coffee comprising the step of treating the coffee with Lactobacillus plantarum NC8. In place of fermentation, acid treatment as described above may be used. The granulated carbohydrate-containing plant material, e.g. a potato or cereal flour or coffee granulates, may be mixed with un-treated granulated carbohydrate-containing plant material before cooking. Desirably the treated:untreated weight ratio is from 25:75 to 100:0, especially 50:50 to 95:5. The term granulate or granulated as used herein may where the context permits include fine to coarse particulates, e.g. flours, granules, grits, fragments, etc . Preferably however the granulates will be 2mm or smaller in maximum dimension. In the case where the plant material is coffee bean, granulation, ragmentation or crushing may be omitted: however this is also less preferable. Moreover the cooked food product in this instance may be further processed, e.g. by conventional means, to produce dried instant coffees or liquid coffee extracts. Preferably the coffee beans will be split or crushed prior to treatment with a lactic acid generating micro-organism and/or acid. Viewed from a further aspect the present invention provides a process for the treatment of coffee to reduce acrylamide production in subsequent roasting thereof comprising splitting and/or crushing said coffee beans prior to treatment with a lactic acid generating microorganism and/or acid, preferably with Lactobacillus plantarum NC8. The food products thus produced are desirably packed into sealed, preferably sterilized containers, e.g. cartons, plastic or foil bags, bottles, etc. Particularly preferably such containers. are moisture- proof . Where appropriate, the food products produced according to the invention may be further processed, e.g. by drying, freezing, cutting, decorating, etc. Such processing steps, which are often conventional for the particular food product, form further optional steps in the processes of the invention. The invention is also applicable to grain, i.e. cereal, products, e.g. breads, biscuits (known in America as cookies), and in particular crisp breads. In this aspect of the invention, the treatment according to the invention may be effected using lactic acid bacteria in the production of the dough and/or by acid treatment (e.g. treatment with sulphur dioxide or hydrogen chloride) of the flour. Besides the fermentation and/or acid treatment according to the invention, the food products (e.g. coffee) of the invention may be prepared by conventional methods, optionally involving rinsing and/or drying after the treatment. Thus such food products may optionally contain further components, such as conventional foodstuff components or additives, e.g. salt, sugars, flavours, fruit, fruit extracts, nuts, eggs, milk, flour, bread, breadcrumbs, stabilizers, colours, buffers, acidulants, yeast, bicarbonate, etc. The invention will now be illustrated further with reference to the following non-limiting Examples.

Example 1

The sugar content of raw coffee beans was measured. Whole and ground coffee beans (Colombian and Brazilian) were soaked in equal parts of water. Sugar levels were measured by a refractometer. The results are given as °Brix (=g sucrose/100 g sample = % sugar)

Table 1. Percent sugars (°Brix) in water after soaking of whole and ground Colombian and Brazilian raw coffee beans

With the raw, ground coffee beans, sugars were immediately released into the soaking water, while no sugars were found when the whole beans were soaked. With the whole beans, sugars were released after extended soaking.

This demonstrates that raw coffee beans contain simple sugars and that there are differences in sugar levels between various types of raw coffee beans. Further, these results show that the sugars of the raw beans are located within the beans, rather than on the surface. This complies with the reports that the simple sugars on the bean surface are removed during the natural fermentation of the beans after harvesting. Avallone et al 2001. Current Microbiology, 42: 252-256.

Example 2

Raw material Raw coffee beans from Brazil were used in the experiments .

Lactic acid fermentation

The Lactobacillus plantarum strain NC8 was used in the experiments. Bacteria cells were grown and harvested late in the logarithmic growth phase by centrifugation and resuspended in fermentation brine (0.9% NaCl) immediately prior to use in the fermentation process. Fermentation was initiated by adding 10⁹ cell/ml brine and the incubation temperature was 30°C.

Buffer pH 4.0 for soaking-

Citrate/phosphate buffer pH 4.0 was prepared from 0.2 M citric acid and 0.4 M di-sodium phosphate.

Determination of soluble solids

Soluble solids in soaking water were determined in a refractometer after soaking 10 g of whole raw coffee beans in 20 ml water for 5 hrs . Soluble solids are reported as °Brix, corresponding to g sucrose/lOOg.

Experimental conditions-

Three pre-treatments were included in the experiments:

1. Control: Whole raw coffee beans with no pretreatment .

2. Lactic acid fermentation: Whole raw coffee beans were mixed with fermentation brine (30°C) in the ratio (w/w) : 1 part beans + 2 parts brine with lactic acid bacteria. The sample was placed in a cabinet at 30°C. Treatment was terminated after 5 hrs when the beans were removed from the brine by filtration. The fermented beans were not rinsed in water. 3. Soaking- in acidic buffer: Whole raw coffee beans were mixed with citrate/phosphate buffer pH 4.0 (30°C) in the ratio (w/w) : 1 part beans + 2 parts buffer. The sample was left at room temperature for 5 hrs when the beans were removed from the buffer by filtration. The fermented beans were not rinsed in water.

Drying, grinding, and roasting

After pretreatment the beans were spread in a thin layer on a plate and dried in an oven at approx. 40°C until dryness. The untreated beans (control) and the dried beans were ground in a hand-driven mechanical coffee grinder.

Roasting was performed at 230°C for 10 min (Schenker et al . 2002. J. Food Sci. 67: 60-66) with the ground beans evenly distributed in a thin layer in an oven. The roasting was done with small portions of ground coffee from all treatments simultaneously in the oven. The portions were placed randomly in the oven.

Analysis

The roasted coffee samples were sent for analysis of acrylamide at Norsk Matanalyse. Accredited analyses were performed at Steins Laboratorium, Denmark.

Photography

Samples of lactic acid fermented, acid treated and untreated coffee after grinding and roasting were photographed.

Example 3

Sugars from coffee beans

Whole raw beans were soaked in water (1:2 w/w) . After 5 hours soaking the °Brix value of the soaking water was 2.3, corresponding to a level of soluble solids of 2.3 g/lOOg. The soluble solids were released from the coffee beans and were most likely sugars . These sugars serve as substrate for the lactic acid bacteria and allow them to grow, metabolize and produce acid.

pH effects on coffee beans

Five hours lactic acid fermentation of whole raw coffee beans reduced pH from 5.6 to 4.75 (Table 4) . The reduction in pH shows that the lactic acid bacteria were metabolizing on substances released from the coffee beans and that they were producing acid.

The pH of the citrate/phosphate buffer remained at 4.0 throughout the soaking period of 5 hrs. During this period it is likely that the outer layers of the coffee beans were penetrated by the acids from the buffer so that the outer layers of the coffee beans had a pH close to 4.0 at the end of the experimental period.

Example 4

Acrylamide formation

The results from the acrylamide analysis of the various types of coffee are presented in Table 2. The highest acrylamide level was obtained in the control where there had been no pretreatment. The level was 139 g/kg ground roasted coffee. Fermentation caused a considerably lower acrylamide level in the roasted coffee. The. reduction compared to the control, was 48%. Also soaking in acidic buffer resulted in extensive reduction in acrylamide in the roasted coffee. The reduction was 36% compared with the control .

Table 2. Effects of lactic acid fermentation or soaking in acids of raw Brazilian coffee beans on acrylamide formation in ground roasted coffee

In the coffee treated with acids only, there is also a substantial reduction in level of acrylamide formed compared with the untreated coffee .

The reduction in acrylamide from lactic acid fermentation was more extensive than from soaking in acids . This demonstrates that the combined effect of reduced sugar and asparagine levels and low pH in the fermentation is more efficient in lowering acrylamide formation in roasted coffee than treatment with acids alone .

The acrylamide level of 139 mg/kg in the coffee without any pretreatment in the present study was comparable to levels of acrylamide previously reported for commercial ground coffee. Among 23 unbrewed ground types of coffee, acrylamide levels ranged from 51 to 359 mg/kg (U.S. FDA 2003) . The median level was 196 mg/kg.

Appearance

The fermented coffee and the coffee soaked in acids were slightly less brown than the untreated coffee (control) . All coffees were given the same extent of roasting as they were heated simultaneously and each batch was placed randomly in the oven. The slightly lighter colour of the fermented coffee shows that the Maillard reaction was less extensive in this coffee compared with the coffee with no pretreatment.

Conclusion

It is concluded that acrylamide formation during roasting of coffee can be considerably reduced by lactic acid fermentation of whole raw coffee beans. Also soaking of raw coffee beans in acids substantially reduces acrylamide formation during roasting.

Example 5 Crisp bread

Ingredients

Finely ground whole rye flour was obtained from Cerealia

Mills, Oslo, Norway.

Crisp bread recipe

The crisp bread dough was based on a standard recipe made from 115Og rye flour, lOOOg water, 20g NaCl . The ingredients were mixed and the dough was rolled out to proper thickness and baked in a stone oven at 240°C.

Acid equivalent

Total amount of acid in the flour-water mixtures was determined as Acid equivalents, S°, by titration. To lOg flour-water mixture, 90g of distilled water is added. During stirring, 0.1 N NaOH is added until a stable pH of 8.5 is reached. Acid equivalents are expressed as the amount of 0.1 N NaOH consumed, in ml.

Pre-treatments

Fer en tat ion

The rye flour used in the crisp bread dough was fermented using a lactic acid bacteria according to the following description: lOOOg rye flour and lOOOg tap water at 30°C was mixed and bacteria (10^ε bacteria/g flour) was added. The bacteria had previously been cultured in MRS growth medium, harvested in the exponential phase, centrifuged and dispersed in water, prior to being added to the flour. Flour fermentation was performed at 30°C in a proofing cabinet at 70% relative humidity (RH) for about 18 hours.

Soaking in lactic acid

The rye flour used in the crisp bread was soaked in lactic acid according to the following description: lOOOg flour was mixed with lOOOg 0.15 M lactic acid at

30°C.

Soaking in acidic phosphate buffer

The rye flour used in the rye crisp bread was soaked in phosphate buffer according to the following description: lOOOg flour was mixed with lOOOg 0.1 M phosphate buffer, pH 4.0, 30°C.

Doughs with the following composition were produced from the pre-treated or non-pre-treated flours:

1. No pre-treatment

345g rye flour + 300g water + 7g NaCl was mixed for 4 min in a Hobardt mixer equipped with a dough hook.

2. Fermentation - lactic acid bacteria added 45Og fermented flour/water mixture (bacteria added) + 15Og untreated rye flour + 7g NaCl was mixed for 4 min in a Hobardt mixer equipped with a dough hook.

3. Lactic acid

45Og flour/water mixture in lactic acid + 15Og untreated rye flour + 7g NaCl was mixed for 4 min in a Hobardt mixture equipped with a dough hook. 4. Phosphate buffer 450g flour/water mixture in phosphate buffer + 150g untreated rye flour + 7g NaCl was mixed for 4 min in 'a Hobardt mixer equipped with a dough hook.

The proportion of pre-treated flour in doughs 2 to 4 was thus 60%.

About lOOg of dough was rolled to 0.5mm thickness and baked at 240°C' for 10 min.

Analysis of acrylamide was effected by Norsk Matanalyse AS, Oslo, Norway.

Results The results are presented in Table 3 below .

*Reduction relative to crisp bread with no pre-treatment .

The pH in the rye flour/water mixture with bacteria added decreased during the pre-treatment . This shows that fermentation had occurred with corresponding acid production. The pH of the mixture with lactic acid and phosphate buffer added was as expected. At the applied conditions, adding lactic acid was effective in lowering pH and was thus similar to the controlled fermentation. The acid equivalent values reflected the changes seen in pH, with higher levels corresponding to the most extensive changes in pH.

Acrylamide levels in crisp bread reflected the various pre-treatments tested. With no pre-treatment, the acrylamide level was high. The use of 60% rye flour fermented by the adding of lactic acid bacteria caused a 75% reduction in acrylamide compared with crisp bread produced without pre-treatment. The reduction was 71% when 60% of the flour was soaked in lactic acid as a pre-treatment. With phosphate buffer, the reduction in acrylamide was 60%.

It is likely that the pre-treatment can be optimised in several ways. First, the present experiments were performed with pre-treatment of only 60% of the total flour in the crisp bread. Doughs based on 100%- fermented flour may be used. Alternatively, the fermented flour may be fully or partly dried prior to application in the crisp bread dough, thus making it possible to adjust the viscosity of the dough to a level appropriate for rolling. Combinations of fermentation and acids may be effective in further lowering acrylamide levels, as well as sole adding of lactic or other acids to higher levels, and/or lower pH values.

Example 6

Potato Products (French fries and potato "crisps"

(American "chips"))

Ingredients Potatoes of the varieties Saturna and Beate were obtained from Department of Horticulture and Crop Sciences, Agricultural University of Norway, As. The potatoes were stored at 8°C from harvest until three - weeks prior to processing when storage temperature was reduced to 4°C.

Palm oil was obtained from Denofa AS, Frederikstad, Norway. The oil had maximum 0.05% free fatty acids, an iodine number of 60, a peroxide value of 0.5 mekv/kg and an anisidin number of 5.0. Fatty acid composition was: 12% linoleic acid, 42% oleic acid and 45% saturated fatty acids.

Citric-phosphate buffer, pH 4, was prepared by mixing 1.8 L 0.1 M citric acid and 1.2 L 0.2 M di-sodium- phosphate.

The Lactobacillus strain NCIMB 40450 was used. Bacteria cells were grown and harvested in the logarithmic growth phase by centrifugation and resuspended in 1% salt brine .

The soaking solutions used were :

Brine for fermentation: 1% NaCl with the addition of bacteria until lx 10^s cells/ml

Brine with lactic acid: 1% NaCl and 1% lactic acid in water

Brine with buffer: 1% NaCl in citrate/phosphate buffer, pH4

Pre-treatment of potatoes

Potatoes (var. Saturna) were peeled and sliced (Robot Vertical Cutter 2, Robot Coupe SA, Le Perreux, France) to 1.5 mm thickness. Potatoes (var. Beate) were peeled and cut with a knife into 6 x 6-mm sticks. The slices and sticks (200g) were immediately added to 400 mL of one of the brines. Samples with acids were left at room temperature for 5 hrs while fermentations were allowed to proceed in an incubator at 30°C for 5 hrs. Control samples were rinsed in water and deep-fried without delay.

Deep frying

The potatoes were dried with paper towels and deep-fried as 150-g portions in palm oil at 170°C in a Nuovo Elframo, Model' EB (Bergamo, Italy) fryer. For potato crisps the frying time was 3 min and for French fries 8 min.

Analyses

Dry matter was determined in a vacuum oven at 70°C overnight. pH of brines was determined using a pH-meter. Soluble solids of potatoes were determined as °Brix using a Metier Toledo RE40 refractometer. Samples were homogenised and a few drops of the homogenates were applied on the refractometer. °Brix is given as g sucrose/lOOg sample.

Accredited analyses of acrylamide were carried out at Steins Laboratorium, Denmark.

Results

The °Brix-value of the potatoes for the crisps production (var. Saturna) was 6.1, and of the potatoes for the production of French fries (var. Beate) 6.8.

Results from the analyses of deep-fried products are shown in Table 4 below. Table 4 Dry matter Acrylamide

Pre-treatment pH in brine g/100g μg/kg μg/kg % reduction after pre- fried dry product (product) treatment product matter

Potato crisps -control 6.7* 95.7 951 910 0 -fermented 4.6 95.8 397 380 58 -lactic acid 5.6 95.1 725 690 24 -buffer 4.2 95.1 673 640 30

French fries -control 6.7* 86.0 744 640 0 -fermented 4.3 85.3 469 400 38 tap water

All samples within each of the product groups were deep- fried for the same period of time, rather than being deep-fried until a certain product colour. Any difference in acrylamide levels thus reflects the ability of each treatment to prevent the formation of acrylamide, regardless of the colour that might be formed during deep fat-frying. Other plant materials, e.g. carrots and other vegetables, may be processed similarly and show significant reductions in acrylamide content. Thus for example carrot crisps (made using 1.5mm slices of carrot) show a 93% reduction in acrylamide content following fermentation as compared with a water rinse in place of fermentation.

Claims

Claims :

1. The use of a lactic acid producing microorganism and/or a physiologically acceptable acid for the treatment of coffee to reduce acrylamide production in subsequent cooking thereof .

2. The use as claimed in claim 1 of a lactic acid producing microorganism for the treatment of coffee to reduce acrylamide production in subsequent cooking thereof .

3. Use as claimed in either of claim 1 and claim 2 wherein said lactic acid producing microorganism is Lactobacillus plantarum NC8.

4. Use as claimed in either of claim 1 and claim 2 wherein said lactic acid producing microorganism is a lactic acid bacterium.

5. The use as claimed in claim 1 of a physiologically acceptable acid for the treatment of coffee to reduce acrylamide production in subsequent cooking thereof .

6. Use as claimed in either of claim 1 and claim 5 of an acid selected from lactic, citric, phosphoric and hydrochloric acids .

7. A process for the reduction of acrylamide production in coffee comprising treating the coffee with a lactic acid producing microorganism and/or a physiologically acceptable acid.

8. The process as claimed in claim 7 for the reduction of acrylamide production in coffee comprising treating the coffee with a lactic acid producing microorganism.

9. A process for the production of a food product which comprises fermenting a granulated or crushed carbohydrate-containing plant material, preferably a- coffee-containing plant material, with a lactic acid producing microorganism, and cooking to produce said food product .

10. The process as claimed in any one of claims 7 to 9 wherein said lactic acid producing microorganism is Lactobacillus plantarum NC8.

11. The process as claimed in any one of claims 7 to 9 wherein said lactic acid producing microorganism is a lactic acid bacterium.

12. The process as claimed in claim 7 for the reduction of acrylamide production in coffee comprising treating the coffee with a physiologically acceptable acid.

13. A process for the production of a food product which comprises treating a granulated or crushed carbohydrate-containing plant material, preferably a coffee-containing plant material, with a physiologically tolerable aqueous acid, and cooking to produce said food product .

14. The process as claimed in either of claims 12 and 13 wherein the acid is selected from lactic, citric, phosphoric and hydrochloric acids .

15. A process as claimed in any one of claims 7 to 14 further comprising packaging the food product into sealed sterilized containers.

16. The use as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6 or the process as claimed in any one of claims 7 to 15, wherein said coffee comprises coffee beans.

17. Food products produced by a process according to any one of claims 7 to 16 or according to a use as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6 and claim 16