Ethyl carbamate levels resulting from azodicarbonamide use in bread

Azodicarbonamide (ADA), a dough conditioner, is an additive approved in the US up to a maximum of 45 mg/kg in flour. The addition of 45 mg/kg of ADA was investigated and found to increase the ethyl carbamate (EC) content of commercially prepared breads by 1-3 micrograms/kg. A similar increase in EC was observed in breads baked in the laboratory with a bread machine. The increase in EC levels appears to depend on a variety of factors, most notably the concentration of ADA added and the time of fermentation. The addition of 20 mg/kg ADA caused only a slight increase, if any, in commercial products but a 2.3 micrograms/kg increase of EC in breads baked with a bread machine. When 100 mg/kg of ascorbic acid was added along with ADA, smaller EC increases were observed. Addition of urea was also found to enhance the EC content of the bread. Toasting, which was previously shown to increase EC levels, caused even larger increases when ADA or urea had been added.