Heterocyclic aromatic amines (HAA) are formed in foods of animal origin during the Maillard reaction due to the high creatine and creatinine contents. HAA have carcinogenic and mutagenic effects. HAA content is not standardized in the Russian Federation and the Customs Union territory. However, in the EU countries, comprehensive monitoring studies are carried out on the HAA contents and effect on the human body. Due to constant expansion of the list of controlled contaminants in food products, analytical laboratories need to develop methods for determining HAA in food items. As a result of the research, a method for HAA determination was developed using high-performance liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry in the mode of specified reaction monitoring. Comparative tests of the two methods for sample preparation were carried out. The advantages and disadvantages of sample preparation approaches were substantiated. The existing SPE conditions were optimized, which made it possible to concentrate trace amounts of MeIQx and PhIP and to dispose of substances suppressing analyte ionization. The estimation of method accuracy and specificity was carried out. The degree of ionization suppression by the matrix for MeIQx and PhIP analytes was determined. The degree of HAA extraction was empirically established. For biological samples of animal origin, it was up to 90.9% for MeIQx and up to 89.4% for PhIP. It is shown that, in accordance with the developed methodology, HAA may be determined with an accuracy of 96.15 to 98.4% at the levels of 5 to 20 ng/g. The limit of quantification of the target substances was 3 ng/g.

Recently the actively active studies have begun devoted to the accumulation of «harmful» substances in food products, which are supposedly accumulated in the body of a person who often consumes these products. Meat, as a source of full-featured animal protein, is especially popular in this aspect. For the preparation of meat products various types of heat treatment are used, almost each of which will inevitably lead to the destruction of some of the chemical compounds originally present in the product, and the formation of completely new chemical compounds, which can often be harmful to the human body. During high-temperature heat treatment (mainly frying), some chemical reactions in meat products occur, which lead to the formation of heterocyclic aromatic amines (HAA) in it. Due to the great variety of raw meat and cooking recipes, during the heat treatment HAA’s of various classes are formed, each of them will be peculiar for the particular type of raw material or recipe components (with the exception of MeIQx and PhIP, which always form during frying). The more complete understanding of the HAA’s formation mechanism will help study the products of Maillard reactions and Strecker degradation. In this work we studied the formation of HAA’s as a result of the cyclization of creatine and the detaching of water (dehydration) from it during temperature exposure. The classification of the compounds formed as a result of these reactions is presented and the main classes of the HAA obtained in result are considered. The questions of the influence of various factors on amount of HAA formed, such as the fat content, the introduction of Fe2+, Fe3+, are raised. In the future it is necessary to conduct studies of the quantitative content of HAA in meat products to complement the already actively ongoing work on the study of xenobiotics consumed by humans with food, which will give a more comprehensive picture of the carcinogens content in food products.

Food fat content is one of the most controversial factors from a consumer’s point of view. Aim: (1) The trends in consumer attitudes towards pork and the fat and meat compositions in Duroc and Altai meat breeds and Livny and Mangalitsa meat and fat breeds were studied. (2) Methods: Netnographic studies were used to assess Russian consumer purchasing behavior. Protein, moisture, fat, backfat fatty acid content from pigs, longissimus muscles, and backfat from (A) Altai, (L) Livny, and (M) Russian Mangalitsa breeds were compared with those from (D) Russian Duroc. Raman spectroscopy and histology were applied to the backfat analysis. (3) Results: The attitude of Russian consumers to fatty pork is contradictory: consumers note its high fat content as a negative factor, but the presence of fat and intramuscular fat is welcomed because consumers positively associate them with better taste, tenderness, flavor, and juiciness. The fat of the ‘lean’ D pigs did not show a “healthy” fatty acid ratio, while the n-3 PUFA/n-6 PUFA ratio in the fat of the M pigs was the best, with significant amounts of short-chain fatty acids. The highest UFA content, particularly omega 3 and omega 6 PUFA, was found in the backfat of A pigs with a minimum SFA content. The backfat of L pigs was characterized by a larger size of the adipocytes; the highest monounsaturated and medium chain fatty acid contents and the lowest short-chain fatty acid content; the ratio of omega 3 to omega 6 was 0.07, and the atherogenicity index in L backfat was close to that of D, despite the fact that D pigs are a meat type, while L pigs are a meat and fat type. On the contrary, the thrombogenicity index in L backfat was even lower than the D one. (4) Conclusions: Pork from local breeds can be recommended for functional food production. The requirement to change the promotion strategy for local pork consumption from the position of dietary diversity and health is stated.