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| Maize cobs colonized by fungus (Photo credit: IITA Image Library) |
News courtesy of the International Association for Cereal Science and Technology (ICC)
Back in November, the EU-research project MYCOSPEC was launched with the participation of SMEs of the cereal industry and research centers.
The MYCOSPEC project, coordinated by research and technology firm IRIS, Spain
aims to develop an innovative system to detect mycotoxins, toxins produced by fungi that infest food crops and processed foods.
Food contaminated with mycotoxins can cause both acute and long-term illness.The potential danger of mycotoxins to humans and livestock have forced strict regulatory controls and results in an increased demand for more rigorous and timely food safety testing. MYCOSPEC aims to help in the fight against mycotoxins with an innovative solution based on infrared spectroscopic fingerprinting technology.
Food contaminated with mycotoxins can cause both acute and long-term illness.The potential danger of mycotoxins to humans and livestock have forced strict regulatory controls and results in an increased demand for more rigorous and timely food safety testing. MYCOSPEC aims to help in the fight against mycotoxins with an innovative solution based on infrared spectroscopic fingerprinting technology.
Quantitative and rapid analysis of these toxins is difficult. Current analytical methods are costly, time- consuming, and not suited to application in the field. The MYCOSPEC project will develop an innovative tool based on infrared spectroscopic fingerprinting and novel laser technology leading to faster and more reliable results.
The envisaged approach will enable the development of a compact yet highly sensitive tool, which will ensure that larger volumes of cereals and foodstuffs can be probed, sensitively detected, and quantified. The high information content of infrared spectroscopic analysis combined with multivariate calibration and the powerful compact mid-infrared laser light source (QCL) will provide a novel approach for rapid, high-throughput monitoring of plant main components obtaining rapid information on crop quality and safety essential for screening systems in the food and feed sector.
The envisaged approach will enable the development of a compact yet highly sensitive tool, which will ensure that larger volumes of cereals and foodstuffs can be probed, sensitively detected, and quantified. The high information content of infrared spectroscopic analysis combined with multivariate calibration and the powerful compact mid-infrared laser light source (QCL) will provide a novel approach for rapid, high-throughput monitoring of plant main components obtaining rapid information on crop quality and safety essential for screening systems in the food and feed sector.
Visit the ICC's website here.
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