Project
Spectral Imaging for Quantifying Real-time Microbial Activity in Food
There is dire need for fast, non-destructive methods that can provide real-time information on microbial presence in food products. Having such methodology would enable producers to reliably estimate of the expected shelf life of products. In this project, the potential of spectral imaging (SI) for this purpose will be investigated.
This SMP proposal is intended to explore the potential of SI as fast, non-invasive quantification method for microbial contaminants associated with food spoilage. Although SI is an already existing technology, the non-invasive, quantitative application to assess the microbiological quality of food is a relatively novel application with a high potential for use in the food industry. In this SMP, two categories of meat products that encounter high levels of product loss due to microbial growth at retail and consumer level, namely beef and poultry meat, will be explored as proof-of-concept.
The proposed SMP is aiming to:
- Explore the potential of SI for a selection of meat products (beef and poultry meat) and compare physicochemical changes detected during different storage scenarios with conventional methods to assess (microbiological) quality.
- Evaluate how spectra fingerprints can be related to microbiological status or activity levels of the beef and poultry meat products.
- Draft a public private partnership proposal on the topic for further development of the method to develop a reliable predictive tool, based on SI measurements that is taking into account other parameters that play a role in spoilage of perishable products (e.g. the composition of the spoilage microbiome and the associated changes in physicochemical changes and/or organoleptic qualities)