Evaluation of new strategies to reduce the total content of α-solanine and α-chaconine in potatoes

Abstract Potatoes are a staple food for over a billion people worldwide, a primary dietary source of carbohydrates, and a vital crop to the agricultural economy of South America, Africa, East Asia and Central Asia. Potatoes occupy third place (after rice and wheat) on the list of foods on which the world depends for food security. In particular, glyco-alkaloids contents in potatoes are potentially toxic and secondary metabolites such as α-solanine and α-chaconine are reported to be dangerous to human health. This paper describes new methods for α-solanine and α-chaconine reduction in the potato cultivar known as Marabel. The potatoes were incubated at room temperature in the dark for 24 h and the optimal experimental condition was achieved with NaOH solution at pH 12. In the assayed samples, α-solanine and α-chaconine reduction was 43% and 27% respectively. The process proposed here allows to minimize the total content of glyco-alkaloids, with respect to mode of collection, storage and cleaning of Marabel potatoes.