Risk/benefit considerations of a new formulation of wheat-based biscuit supplemented with different amounts of chia flour

• Chia flour added to wheat-based biscuits enhanced the nutritional properties.
• Chia flour added to wheat-based biscuits increased process contaminants formation.
• Acrylamide, hydroxymethylfurfural and furfural increased in chia-enriched biscuits.
• Lipid oxidation was accelerated in chia-enriched biscuits.

The incorporation of Chia (Salvia hispanica L.) in the formulation of certain foods may be particularly desirable from a nutritional and healthy point of view. The effect of addition of chia flour on the nutritional properties and the formation of process contaminants in wheat flour-based biscuits was investigated. Higher percentage of chia flour in the formula increased the antioxidant capacity, phenolic compounds, protein, fiber and polyunsaturated fatty acids content, then resulting in a nutritionally enhanced product. However levels of process contaminants were also increased and thus acrylamide, hydroxymethylfurfural and furfural ranged between 151 and 1188 μg/kg, 22.8–71.4 mg/kg and 1.3–5.6 mg/kg, respectively, when chia was added in a range of 0–20% of the total weight. In parallel, the formation of dicarbonyl compounds, such as methylglyoxal and glyoxal, were significantly increased with addition of 5%. Lipid oxidation, particularly polymerization compounds, was accelerated in chia-enriched biscuits, which decreased the shelf-life of the product by promoting a rapid rancidity under accelerated storage conditions. Therefore, although nutritional properties are improved by the incorporation of chia into the biscuits, the increase in the content of process contaminants and the extent of the lipid oxidation should be carefully considered in a context of risk/benefit.