Abstract :

Cachaça is the name of a Brazilian beverage produced by distillation of fermented sugarcane juice. It is called “alembic cachaça ”  when produced in an agricultural environment, through fermentation of fresh sugarcane juice and distillation by batches in copper stills.  Due to the peculiarities of the process and the dedication of hundreds of producers, this drink achieved improved and highly differentiated sensory quality; conquering new markets and winning important prizes in national and international competitions. In this context, there is a growing search both for resources to prevent fraud in marketing and for certificates that attest to the safety of consumers’ health, especially HACCP. In this review article, we highlight the points already achieved in the standardization of the production process and introduce others that still require appropriate standardization, related to the control of pesticides in the sugarcane field, the safety of the wood used in the storage barrels and the certification of the production process. It is also proposed to review the limit of Brazilian legislation for the ethyl carbamate content.

---

Keywords :

Alembic cachaça, Ethyl carbamate, HACCP, Pesticides, Wood barrels.

---

References :

1. Almeida, C. R., Raszl, S. M. , Minério, N. D. B. and Júnior, G. A. C. (2005). Codex Alimentarius.  Organização Pan-Americana da Saúde. https://iris.paho.org/handle/10665.2/51873
2. Alves, R.M.S. ed. (s/d). [Integrated manual for the prevention and control of foodborne diseases. Ministry of Health, SVS].  136 p. https://bvsms.saude.gov.br/bvs/publicacoes/manual_integrado_prevencao_doencas_alimentos.pdf
3. ANVISA (1997). Portaria SVS/MS nº 326 de 30/07/1997. [Approves the Technical Regulation; “Hygienic-sanitary conditions and good manufacturing practices for food producing/industrializing establishments”]. https://bvsms.saude.gov.br/bvs/saudelegis/svs1/1997/prt0326_30_07_1997.html
4. ANVISA (2002). Res. RDC nº 275 de 21/10/2002. [Provides for the technical regulation of standardized operating procedures applied to food producing/industrializing establishments and the checklist of good manufacturing practices in food producing/industrializing establishments].
5. ANVISA (2005). Res. RDC nº 218 de 29/07/2005. [Provides for the Technical Regulation of Hygienic-Sanitary Procedures for Handling Food and Drinks Prepared with Vegetables].

https://bvsms.saude.gov.br/bvs/saudelegis/anvisa/2005/rdc0218_29_07_2005.html

6. ANVISA (2022) RDC no 225 de 01/07/2022. [Provides for flavoring food additives]. Diário Oficial da União, Brasília.
7. ANVISA (s/d). [Guidance booklet on the use of herbal medicines and medicinal plants]. https://www.gov.br/anvisa/pt-br/centraisdeconteudo/publicacoes/medicamentos/publicacoes-sobre-medicamentos/orientacoes-sobre-o-uso-de-fitoterapicos-e-plantas-medicinais.pdf
8. Armas, E.D., Monteiro, R.T.R., Amâncio, A.V., Correa, R.M.L. and Guercio, M.A. (2005). [Use of pesticides on sugarcane in the Corumbataí river basin and the risk of water pollution]. Química Nova, 28(6): 975-982
9. Baffa Jr, J.C. [Mechanisms of ethyl carbamate formation during the production and storage of sugar cane spirit]. Viçosa, UFV, 2011. (Doctor Thesis)
10. Barbosa, S.K.B. and Rosa, L.C.R.  (2003). [Application of HACCP (HACCP) in the wine industry – current situation and perspectives]. Ouro Preto (MG). XXIII Enc. Nac. Eng. Produção.

https://abepro.org.br/biblioteca/enegep2003_tr0201_0558.pdf

11. Barreto, J.A.S. (2021). [Environmental impacts caused by the application of pesticides in sugarcane fields in the Northeast]. Alagoas, UFAL. TCC/Gestor Ambiental. https://ud10.arapiraca.ufal.br/repositorio/publicacoes/4290
12. Bauer, R. and Dicks, L. M. T. (2004). Control of malolactic fermentation in wine. A review. S. Afr. J. Enol. Vitic. , 25(2), 74-88. DOI: 10.21548/25-2-2141.
13. Bintsis, T. (2018). Lactic acid bacteria: their applications in foods. J. Bacteriol. Mycol., 6(2): 89–94. DOI: 10.15406/jbmoa.2018.06.00182.
14. Bortoletto, A. (2018). [Proposal for good manufacturing practices, hazard analysis and critical control point plan for cachaça distilleries]. Agric., 75(5) https://doi.org/10.1590/1678-992X-2017-0040.
15. Portaria n° 46 de 10/02/1998. [Establishes the HACCP System to be implemented, gradually, in the animal products industries under the regime of the Federal Inspection Service – SIF]
16. Portaria no 1.428 de 26/11/ 1993. [Approves the “Technical Regulation for Sanitary Inspection of Food”, the “Guidelines for the Establishment of Good Production and Service Provision Practices in the Food Area” and the “Technical Regulation for the Establishment of Identity and Quality Standards (PIQ’s) for Services and Products in the Food Area”].
17. Portaria SVS/MS nº 326 de 30 de julho de 1997: [Defines Good Sanitary Hygiene Practices and Good Manufacturing Practices, according to Codex Alimentarius].
18. RDC n° 275 de 21 10/2002. [Approves the technical regulation of standardized operating procedures applied to food producing/industrializing establishments and the checklist of good manufacturing practices in food producing/industrializing establishments].

https://bvsms.saude.gov.br/bvs/saudelegis/anvisa/2002/anexos/anexo_res0275_21_10_2002_rep.pdf

19. Cabras, P., Angioni, A., Garau, V.L., Minelli, E.V., Melis, M. and Piris, F.M. (1997). Pesticides in distilled wine spirits and their by-products. J. Agric. Food Chem.,45 (6): 2248-2251.
20. Coldea, T.E., Mudura, E. and Socaciu, C. (2017). Advances in authenticity and quality testing of distilled spirits. Cap. 6. http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.72041.

• Dearfield, K. L., Hoelzer, K. and Kause. J.R. (2014). Review of various approaches to assessing public health risks in regulatory decision-making: choosing the right approach to the problem. J. Food Protection, 77(8):1428-1440.

21. Edwards, C. G. and Beelman, R. B. (2002). Induction of malolactic fermentation in wines. Aust. J. Grape Wine Res., 7(1): 52-59.
22. EU (1999). Scientific Committee on Food (SCF). “Opinion on Coumarin,” European Commission Health and Consumer Protection Directorate-General, Brussel, 22/09/1999, pp. 1-11. http://ec.europa.eu/food/fs/sc/scf/out40_en.pdf
23. EU (2004). Regulation No. 852/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the hygiene of foodstuffs. Official Journal of the European Union.

https://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2004:139:0001:0054:pt:PDF

24. EU (2007). Opinion of the scientific panel on contaminants in the food chain, at the request of the European Commission, on ethyl carbamate and hydrocyanic acid in food and drinks. EFSA J. 551:1-44
25. EU (2008). European Commission (2008). European Parliament and Council Directive No. 1334/2008. On flavourings and certain food ingredients with flavouring properties for use in and on food.  Official J. Eur. Union: L354, 34–50. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/ LexUriServ.do? uri=OJ:L: 2008:354:0034:0050
26. EU (2010). Commission Recommendation of 2 March 2010 on the prevention and reduction of ethyl carbamate contamination in stone fruit spirits and stone fruit pomace spirits and the monitoring of EC levels in these drinks. http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EX/TXT/PDF/? uri—CELEX:32010H0133&qid—1441179870584&de—PT.
27. FAO/OMS (2006). Food Safety Risk Analysis. A guide for national food safety authorities. Food Nutrition Document. FAO (Roma), OMS: 87. ISBN 978- 92-5-105604-2.
28. Fialho, M.L., Adorno, P.A., Lima, J.I.C., Reis, K.P. and Oliveira, R.B. (2018). [The use of pesticides in sugarcane cultivation and the main risks to the health of rural workers]. Em: https://www.unaerp.br/revista-cientifica-integrada/edicoes-anteriores/volume-3-edicao-4/2986
29. Galinaro, C.A. and Franco, D.W. (2011). [Ethyl carbamate formation in freshly distilled beverages: proposal for its control]. Química Nova, 34: 996-1000
30. Garg, S.S., Gupta, J., Sharma, S. and Sahu, D. (2020). An insight into the therapeutic applications of coumarin compounds and their mechanisms of action. J. Pharm Sci.   https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejps2020.105424
31. Hassan, M.Z., Osman, H., Ali, M.A. and Ahsan, M. (2016). Therapeutic potential of coumarins as antiviral agents.
32. J. Med. Chem., 123:236-255. DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2016.07.056
33. He, N.X. and Bayen, S. (2020). An overview of chemical contaminants and other undesirable chemicals in alcoholic beverages and strategies for analysis. Compr. Rev. Alimentos Saf., 19(6): 3916-3950. DOI: 10.1111/1541-4337.12649 => citar no texto
34. IARC (2010). International Agency for Research on Cancer. Cancer. Alcohol consumption and ethyl carbamate. Lyon, France. ISBN: 978-92-832-1296-6
35. Inoue, T., Nagatami, Y., Uyama, A. and Mochizuki, N. (2010). Fate of pesticides in a distilled spirit of barley shochu during the distillation process. Biosci. Biotechnol. Biochem., 74(12): 2518-2522.
36. Kourtis, L.K. and Arvanitoyannis, I.S. (2001). Implementation of hazard analysis critical control point (HACCP) system to the alcoholic beverages industry. Food Rev. Intern., 17: 1-44. DOI: 10.1081/FRI-100000514 => CITAR NO TEXTO
37. Labanca, R.A. (2009). [Ethyl carbamate and its precursors in sugarcane spirit: analysis methods and their correlations]. Belo Horizonte, FaFar-UFMG. CDD 663.59 (Ms. thesis)
38. LABM (2023). Results of certified and traceable analyses of hundreds of samples of alembic cachaça and other alcoholic beverages. (Unpublished).  labm.com.br
39. Lim HS and Lee KG. (2011). Development and validation of analytical methods for ethyl carbamate in various fermented foods. Food Chem., 126:1373-1379. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2010.11.110
40. Lloret, A., Boido, E., Lorenzo, D., Medina, K., Carrau, F. and and Dellacassa, E. (2002). Aroma variation in Tannat wines: effect of malolactic fermentation on ethyl lactate level and its enantiomeric distribution. Food Sci., 14, 175–180.
41. Lorenzi, H. (2008). [Brazilian Trees]. Nova Odessa, Ed. Plantarum. 3v. ISBN: 9786587655000 /  9786587655079
42. Maarse, H. (1991). Volatile compounds in food and beverages. New York, Marcel & Dekker, 1991.
43. Maia, A.B. and Campelo, E.P. (2006). [Alembic Cachaça Technology]. Belo Horizonte, Sebrae-SindBebidas.ISBN 85-86428-53-1
44. Maia, A.B.; Marinho, L.S. and Nelson, D.L (2020) Advances in the characterization of alambica cachaça: ethyl lactate. Soc. DOI: 10.33448/rsd-v9i9.7116
45. Maia, A.B. (2021). [Role of wood in the aging of cachaça]. RECIMA21, 2(8).

https://doi.org/10.47820/recima21.v2i8.682

46. Maia, A.B.; Marinho, L.S. and Nelson, D.L. (2021a). Relevance of ethyl lactate among cachaça esters. RECIMA21. DOI: 10.47820/recima21.v2i6.467
47. Maia, A.B.; Marinho, L.S. and Nelson, D.L (2021b). Certification of amburana in the aging of cachaça. Res. Soc. Develop. DOI:10.33448/rsd-v9i12.10644
48. Maia, A.B. (2022). Ethyl carbamate in cachaça. [Document forwarded in response to the Public Consultation] Port. no 339 de 28/06/2021. Belo Horizonte, LABM. labm.com.br
49. Maia, AB, Marinho, LS, Tonidandel, LO, Carneiro, FMB, Conceição, EC and Machado, B.D. (2023a). Occurrence and significance of coumarin in cachaça stored in amburana]. Res. Soc. Develop., 12(1). DOI: 10.33448/rsd-v12i1.39667.
50. Maia, AB, Marinho, LS, Tonidandel, LO, Carneiro, FMB, Conceição, EC and Machado, B.D. (2023b). Coumarin in Brazilian cachaça stored in barrels of Amburana cearensis. ISBN 978-81-19491-74-2, e-book ISBN: 978-81-19491-75-9. DOI: 10.9734/bpi/cpafs/v5/6439E
51. MAPA (1998). Portaria no 46 de 2/10/1998. [Establishes the hazard analysis and critical control points system HACCP to be implemented in animal products industries under the Federal Inspection Service regime – SIF] https://www.defesa.agricultura.sp.gov.br/legislacoes/portaria-ma-46-de-10-02-1998,687.html
52. MAPA (2022). Portaria n° 539 de 26/12/ 2022. [Establishes identity and quality standards for sugarcane spirit and cachaça]. https://www.gov.br/economia/pt-br/acesso-a-informacao/reg/Selo%20de%20Boas%20Praticas%20 Regulatorias/2022/selo-ouro/mapa-portaria-mapa-ndeg-539-2022
53. Moraes, M.A.F.D. (2007). [The profound institutional changes throughout the history of the sugarcane agroindustry and current challenges]. Rev. Econ. Aplicada, 11: 555-557
54. MS (2016). [National Politics and Program for Medicinal Plants and Phytotherapeutics]. Brasília, Ministério da Saúde. ISBN 978-85-334-2399-2
55. Novaes, R. and Alves, F. (2007). [Migrants: work and workers in the sugarcane agro-industrial complex:the heroes of Brazilian agribusiness]. São Carlos, EdUFSCar.
56. Orduña, R.M., Liu, S.Q., Patchett, M.L., Pilone, G.J. (2000). Ethyl carbamate precursor citrulline formation from arginine degradation by malolactic wine lactic acid bacteria. FEMS Microbiology Letters , 183(1): 31-5.
57. Oliveira, A.H., Kitada, C.F. and Kitada, M. (2010). [Environmental impacts of sugar cane cultivation]. Votuporanga – SP, Etec Frei Arnaldo Maria de Itaporanga. TCC/Técnico em produção de cana de açúcar
58. Pang, X.N., Li, Z.J., Chen, J.Y., Gao, L.J. and Han, B.Z. (2017). A comprehensive review of spirits safety standards and regulations from an international perspective. Rev. Prot. Alimentos, 80 (3): 431-442.  DOI:10.4315/0362-028X. JFP-16-319
59. Pardo, I. and Ferrer, S. (2022). Malolactic fermentation in white wines. In: Morata, A. (2022) White winw twchnology. New York, Press.  Cap.14.  ISBN: 978-0-12-823497-6.
60. Pearson, A.M. and Dutson, T.R. (1995). HACCP in Meat, Poultry and Fish Processing. Springer  ISBN:9780834213272, 0834213273
61. Rad , J.S., Martins, N.C.,  Jornet, P.L.,  Lopez, E.P.F.  Harun, N.,  Yeskaliyeva, B.,  Beyatli, A. , Sytar, O.,  Shaheen, S.,  Sharopov, F.,  Taheri, Y.,  Docea, A.O.,  Calina, D. and Cho, W. C .   (2021). Natural Coumarins: exploring the pharmacological complexity and underlying molecular mechanisms. . Oxid Med Cell Longev., 23: 6492346.                      DOI: 10.1155/2021/6492346.
62. Rodrigues, G.S.S.C. and Ross, J.L.S. (2020). [The trajectory of sugarcane in Brazil: geographic, historical and environmental perspectives]. Uberlândia, Ed. ISBN 9786558240112, 6558240114
63. Ryu, D et al. Determination of ethyl carbamate in alcoholic beverages and fermented foods sold in Korea . Toxicol. Res., 31(3): 289-297. https://www.qualfood.com/seguranca-alimentar/avaliacao-de-riscos-quimicos/etil-carbamato-uretano.
64. Sanches, S.M., Silva, C.H.T.P., Campos, S.X. and Vieira, E.M. (2003) [Pesticides and their respective risks associated with water contamination]. Rev. Ecotoxicol. Meio Amb., 13:53-58.
65. Shin, J.A., Cho, H., Seo, D.W.,  Jeong, H.G., Kim, S.C., Lee, J.H., Hong, S.T. and Lee, K.T. (2019).   Approach study for mass balance of pesticide residues in distillers’ stillage along with distillate and absence verification of pesticides in distilled spirits from pilot-scale of distillation column.  Molecules, 24(14): 2572.  DOI: 10.3390/molecules24142572
66. Silva, J.H.N.; Bernardi, M.R.V. and Oliveira, A.L.(2019). Cachaça production in Brazil and its main contaminant (ethyl carbamate). Sci. Agric. (Piracicaba), 77(2). 1590/1678-992x-2018-0135
67. Sobrun, Y., Luximon, A.B., Jhurry, D. and Puchooa, D. (2012). Isolation of lactic acid bacteria from sugar cane juice and production of lactic acid from selected improved strains. Biosci. Biotechnol., 3(4): 398–407. DOI:10.4236/abb.2012.34057.
68. Taki N., Imamura L., Takebe S. and Kobashi K. (1992). Cyanate as a precursor of ethyl carbamate in alcoholic beverages. Jpn. J. Toxicol. Environ. Health., 38:498–505. DOI: 10.1248/jhs1956.38.498
69. Ventura, R. (2007). [Quantification of lactic acid in ethanolic fermentation as a process monitoring parameter].
70. Rio Claro (SP). https://repositorio.unesp.br/server/api/core/bitstreams/9341a275-c218-4a25-9b52-12dc1a78b9a8/content
71. Verçoza, L.V. (2012). [Workers in the sugarcane fields of Alagoas: a study on working conditions and resistance]. São Carlos, UFSCar. https://repositorio.ufscar.br/handle/ufscar/6734?show=full
72. Weber, J.V. and Sharypov, V.I. (2009). Ethyl carbamate in foods and beverages – a Review. Environ. Chem. Lett., 7(3): 233-247. DOI:10.1007/s10311-008-0168-8
73. Xue, J. , Fu, M. , Liang, M., Zhao, C. , Wang, D. and Wu, Y. (2015).  Ethyl carbamate production kinetics during wine storage.   Afr. J. Enol. Vitic.,36 (2). ISSN 2224-7904
74. Zimmerli, B. and Schlatter J. (1991). Ethyl carbamate: analytical methodology, occurrence, formation, biological activity and risk assessment. Mutat Res., 259(3-4):325-50. DOI: 10.1016/0165-1218(91)90126-7.