FoodPacific Manufacturing Journal – July 2019

(^40) FoodPacific Manufacturing Journal July 2019 http://www.industrysourcing.com
quality & safety

T

HE International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)

embarks on a five-year research project to help

fight fraud in premium honey, coffee, speciality rice

varieties, and other high value products.

Working on the case are experts from 16 countries

who will refine the methods to apply nuclear-derived techniques to

test for accuracy in food labels.

The project is carried out in cooperation with the Food and

Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

“Numerous foods are sold at premium prices because of

specific production methods, or geographical origins,” said project

coordinator and IAEA food safety specialist Simon Kelly. “In order

to protect consumers from fraud, and potential unintended food

safety issues, we need standardized methods to confirm that the

product has the characteristics that are claimed on the label.”

Stable isotope techniques

The project will help countries apply stable isotope techniques

to protect and promote foods with added-value, such as organic food

or products with specific geographical origins like Jamaican Blue

Mountain coffee. The method works by looking at the ratio of stable

isotopes in elements – such as hydrogen, oxygen and carbon – and

the concentration of elements in a sample of the product. These can

provide a unique fingerprint that links a crop to the place where it is

cultivated.

“DNA will tell your parentage but not where you were brought

up, whereas the isotopes the food product has absorbed from the

environment reflect where they grow,” said Russell Frew, professor

of chemistry at the University of Otago in New Zealand and one of

the experts taking part in the project.

Mr Frew worked previously at the Food and Environmental

Protection Laboratory of the Joint FAO/IAEA Programme in

Seibersdorf, Austria, where he helped to develop the stable isotope

method to test for authenticity in manuka honey. “It is reported that there

is about six times as much manuka consumed as is produced,” he said.

The honey, produced from the nectar of the New Zealand manuka tree

flower, boasts natural anti-microbial properties and can fetch up to 1,000

New Zealand dollars, or almost Euro 600, per kilogramme.

Nives Ogrinc, Professor of Ecotechnology at the Jozef Stefan

Institute in Slovenia, is looking to apply the method to safeguard the

quality and geographic denomination of Slovenian truffles, a lucrative

IAEA project

targets food fraud

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) taps

stable isotope techniques in protecting and promoting

high value foods with specific geographical origins.

business. “White truffles can sell for up to 2,300 Euro per kg – they

are a big market, so there is a lot of fraud. We are also working on

fruits and vegetables such as strawberries, cherries, and garlic.”

Protecting products from developing countries

Fraud is a growing problem in the food industry, affecting

countries globally and hurting exports. The research project will

help developing countries increase compliance with regulatory

requirements, thus facilitating trade.

Incorrect labelling is also affecting Thai Hom Mali rice, a

premium fragrant long-grain variety that accounts for 13-18% of Thai

rice exports. The rice is produced in the north and north-eastern parts

of the country, which offer the ideal combination of soil and climate

conditions. “We have no laboratory to do this type of analysis, so I

want to learn how to apply this method,” said Wannee Srinuttrakul, a

scientist at the Thailand Institute of Nuclear Technology.

Prized for its aroma and low-acidity, Jamaican Blue Mountain

coffee is among the world’s most expensive, making it prone to

counterfeiting. “It is really important for us to protect our coffee,”

said Leslie Ann Hoo Fung, a researcher at the International Centre for

Environment and Nuclear Sciences in Kingston, Jamaica. “We want

to apply nuclear techniques to differentiate Blue Mountain from High

Mountain coffee, for example, as they command different price points.”

Jamaica also wants to look at the applicability of the technique to other

premium national commodities, such as cocoa and rum.

The research project started with a kick-off meeting and will

run for five years. Participating countries include China, Costa

Rica, Denmark, India, Indonesia, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Malaysia,

Morocco, Myanmar, New Zealand, Slovenia, Spain, Thailand and

Uruguay.

The IAEA, jointly with the FAO, helps its Member States use

nuclear and related techniques for science-based solutions to

improve food safety and security and sustainable agricultural

practices. The FAO, together with the European Bank for

Reconstruction and Development, published a report in 2018

highlighting the benefits of robust geographical indication systems

for local food products to rural communities.

Related resources

Food safety and quality https://www.iaea.org/topics/food-safety-and-quality

Fighting fraud with nuclear science https://www.iaea.org/newscenter/multimedia/videos/

fighting-food-fraud-with-nuclear-science

Stable isotope analysis can help differentiate real manuka honey

(right jar) from a fake. A new IAEA project will help countries apply this

technique to combat fraud in premium foods. (Photo: A. Cannavan/IAEA)