Imagine going into a local supermarket or butchery, pulling out your cell phone and using its camera to instantly check for the best piece of meat on display. That is one of the applications that some in Japan hope could become possible one day from scientific research into using infrared cameras to grade the taste of high-quality beef.
Scientists at the Gifu Prefectural Research Institute of Information Technology and the Gifu Prefectural Livestock Research Institute are using infrared cameras to analyze Hida-gyu, a local specialty high-grade meat similar to Kobe beef.
The two institutes are focusing on evaluating the level of Oleic acid, a monounsaturated omega-9 fatty acid, found within the beef, Jiji Press reported. The institutes’ researchers believe that Oleic acid levels are related to the tenderness and smell of the meat, which directly affect the taste. In other words, the more Oleic acid found, the greater the tenderness, the better the smell, and the higher the quality of the overall taste.
Beef that may have the same look and same grade could have highly different flavors depending on the quality of the fat. Up until now, such physical inspections by experts were slow and difficult, and also required grinding up the meat. The infrared technique being developed by the two institutes in Gifu will hopefully allow for rapid and accurate quality appraisal of unminced beef, the Gifu Shimbun reported.
At a taste testing held by the two Gifu institutes on Jan. 29th, twenty-four nutritionists, livestock industry experts, and consumers were asked to rank two samples of super high-quality Hida-gyu, boiled quickly in a Japanese hotpot, on ten points, according to the Yomiuri. Of the twenty-four participants, fourteen gave a better ranking to the samples that were determined to have higher levels of Oleic acid by the researchers’ infrared camera technique. One of the institutes’ lead researchers, Tomoyuki Tanaka, told reporters, “I want to improve the accuracy.”
According to the Gifu Shimbun, the institutes hope to use the technique to get tastier beef into the hands of consumers, helping them separate the Hida-gyu name from other high-quality Japanese beefs. They are also looking to have the technique in test use in secondary markets by the end of next year.
Read more news from Japan by the Japan Headlines Examiner
Comments
isn't this kind of obvious? you can use hyperspectral classification for just about anything. it would be more interesting if they were using NMR spectroscopy as part of food grading.
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