Níveis de congêneres, carbamato de etila e outros contaminantes em runs e uísques de consumo popular no Brasil

Abstract

Among the various toxic substances found in alcoholic beverages, especially in spirits, ethyl carbamate (EC), a recognized carcinogen of organic nature, has drawn great attention to food inspecting authorities and researchers. Taking into account various scientific studies showing that cachaça, the most consumed spirit in Brazil, has high levels of EC, the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food Supply (MAPA) established an EC limit (150 μg.L-1) for the beverage in 2005 (which is coming into effect in June 2012), but other consumed spirits in Brazil, such as rums and whiskies, are not subjected to EC control by MAPA. Given the lack of information on the chemical profiles of rums and whiskies produced in Brazil, the objective of this study was to quantify congeners (volatile acids, aldehydes, esters, furfural, higher alcohols), EC and other contaminants (methanol, acrolein, sec-butanol, copper, lead and arsenic) in these beverages. Fifteen brands of rum and nine brands of whisky were sampled. All brands were low-priced (below US$20 per bottle) and recorded (licit). With the exception of two brands of rum, all brands complied with MAPA regulation for total congeners. With respect of EC, levels above 50 μg.L-1 (limit of quantification) were observed in one brand of whisky (86 μg.L-1) and three brands of rum (115, 340 e 278 μg.L-1). Therefore, the majority (83%) of sampled brands complied with the international EC limit for spirits (150 μg.L-1). It was also observed that the two brands of rum which exceeded the EC limit (126% and 85%) also presented relatively high levels of methanol. In general terms, the results indicate that distillation processes used in rum and whisky production in Brazil, notably column distillation and rectification, are suitable for controlling EC and other contaminants. Although rum and cachaça originate from the same raw material (sugar cane), EC levels in rum is comparatively lower. This observation is probably related to the distillation process (column distillation and rectification) or the physicochemical treatment by which the sugar cane juice is subjected (conversion into molasses) in rum production.