Acrylamide (AA) is a food contaminant in thermally processed products that is object of tight control. A simple and easy-to-apply methodology for routine monitoring of AA levels in food products could allow producers to be players in the control of their own products. In this work, a simple methodology for AA quantification without derivatization was developed for biscuits, for which the benchmark levels recommended by EFSA are 350 µg/kg, and 150 µg/kg for biscuits for infants and young children. Headspace-solid phase microextraction (HS-SPME) was used in 120 mL screwed-cap vials with a carboxen/polydimetylsiloxane fiber, 4 g of biscuits, and 10 mL of water during 15 min at room temperature under stirring. The addition of 30 mL of propanol under stirring during 15 min at room temperature and 15 min at 60 °C was used to promote AA transfer to the headspace. The fiber exposure was 45 min. A gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis allowed to obtain an external calibration curve at m/z 71, with linearity R² > 0.99 and precision RSD < 9%. The detection and quantification limits were 27.4 µg/kg and 91.5 µg/kg, respectively. The methodology was successfully used in biscuits with lower AA amount, where mitigation strategies (asparaginase or pectate) were applied.

The antioxidant activity, total polyphenol content (TPC), and total flavonoids content (TFC) of sea buckthorn juice was analyzed with electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and ultraviolet-visible (UV-VIS) in ethanol, methanol, and acetone extracts. The choice of a suitable solvent system is necessary so as not to skew the results. Undiluted juice of sea buckthorn berries is not suitable for the mentioned analyzes. Sea buckthorn juices were evaporated under vacuum until completely dry and then dissolved in 100% methanol, 96% ethanol, 70% ethanol, and 50% acetone. The 70% ethanol extract of sea buckthorn juice had an average of 1.3- and 1.6-times greater TPC and TFC values than other extracts, respectively. The 70% ethanol extract of juice contained 29 mg gallic acid equivalents (GAE)/g dw and 4 mg catechin equivalents (CE)/g dw. The results of the antioxidant activity of the extracts determined by EPR spectroscopy had an error rate ~ 2.5 times lower than the UV-VIS analysis. The highest antioxidant activity (123 mmol of Trolox equivalents/kg extract) was determined with EPR and ABTS radical in the 70% ethanol extract. This method correlated well with the TFC levels.

Sea buckthorn pomace is a by-product of juice production, which is still rich in bioactive compounds. After drying, the pomace can be effectively used as a valuable addition to bakery products supporting their nutritional value. However, due to the high content of the amino acid asparagine in sea buckthorn, this promising material contributes to the undesirable formation of acrylamide. To reduce the risk from this potentially carcinogenic compound, enzymatic treatment of sea buckthorn with asparaginase was applied, which resulted in a substantial reduction of asparagine content from 1834 mg/kg in untreated dried sea buckthorn pomace to 89 mg/kg in enzymatically treated dried sea buckthorn pomace. 10% substitution of wholegrain cereal flour with enzymatically treated sea buckthorn pomace powder in rye and triticale biscuits resulted in a 35% reduction in acrylamide content, in the case of wholegrain wheat biscuits up to a 64% reduction, compared to biscuits with untreated sea buckthorn pomace powder. This study confirmed that treating fruit with asparaginase is an effective way to reduce health risk caused by acrylamide in biscuits enriched with nutritionally valuable fruit pomace.

Background/Objectives: Fermented foods are integral to European diets, yet compre-hensive data on their consumption patterns remain scarce. This study aimed to char-acterise fermented food intake across four European regions and examine demographic influences on consumption behaviour. Methods: Cross-sectional data were collected from 12,646 adults in 53 countries (2023–2024) using the validated Fermented Food Frequency Questionnaire (3FQ) under the PIMENTO COST Action (CA 20128). Weighted analyses accounted for regional popu-lation distributions, sex, and age. Intake was assessed across 15 fermented food cate-gories, with prevalence and quantity estimates derived from frequency and portion-size data. Results: Among all fermented food groups, fermented dairy products were consumed almost universally (94.1–95.6%) with median daily intakes of 66.7–80.1 g/day. Coffee and fermented cereals were also highly prevalent (78.4–84.1% and 89.9–95.9%, respectively), with median intakes of 60.0–73.1 g/day for coffee and 44.0–77.1 g/day for cereals. Choc-olate showed a weekly intake (76.0–138.8 g/week) with prevalence exceeding 90% in all regions. In contrast, fermented vegetables and legumes had low intakes (4.4–8.4 g/day and 4.5–9.0 g/week, respectively), and plant-based alternatives were consumed by up to 72.8% in Western Europe, but with a negligible intake (median 25.5 g/week). Alcoholic beverages varied regionally: wine ranged from 12.5 to 25.0 g/day, and beer/cider from 25.0 to 50.0 g/day. Fermented non-alcoholic beverages had low prevalence (18.3–49.3%) but relatively higher weekly intake among consumers (18.7–49.8 g/week). Across cate-gories, a clear discordance emerged between high prevalence and modest intake. Conclusions: This Europe-wide mapping of fermented food consumption revealed substantial regional heterogeneity and modest overall intake. These findings help es-tablish baseline data for nutritional epidemiology research and evidence-based dietary guidelines, although they also support that region-specific rather than pan-European dietary guidelines may be required. Future research should integrate microbiome and other approaches to elucidate their combined health implications comprehensively.