ISM 2019

•••4••• Innovationen “FoodInSpector” detects contaminations Effective quality control: inline-capable sensor technology for inspection of packaged foods T ime and again, food contami- nation from materials such as plastics and glass leads to costly recall campaigns. Designed for the quality control of food, Fraun- hofer FHR and its partner Fraun- hofer IOSB developed the “Food- InSpector” sensor system. FoodInSpector uses millimetre waves to scan products and de- tect contamination as well as deviations in the production pro- cess. The technology is capable of inspecting frozen products, baked goods, and hollow as well as filled products. Millimetre wave sensors take their measurements based not only on the attenuation of the signal during the scan but also on the changes of the signal’s transit time caused by inclusions. Com- bined with an automatic image analysis process, the resulting sys- tem is able to reliably scan pack- aged goods for contaminants and detect deviations in homogenous production processes. Furthermore, thanks to the ability to measure residual moisture, the system is particularly well suited for the monitoring of drying pro- cesses. Unlike x-ray technology, the processes can be applied directly without any additional radiation protection measures. They can also provide a stronger contrast ratio, particularly for plastic contaminants. Up to now, the most common technique for product inspections in the food industry besides x-ray are optical systems such as hyperspectral cameras. For the most part, these systems only capture measure- ment readings on product sur- faces. By combining them with high frequency sensors, it is pos- sible to examine packaged goods and detect contaminations inside products. Fraunhofer IOSB and FHR demon- strated such a sensor system us- ing chocolate bars as an example. The process can be adapted to the most diverse products to de- liver optimised customer-specific results, being especially suitable for dried and frozen food. System development is focused on the the ability to integrate these sensors into existing plants. As one of Eu- rope’s leading institutes, the Fraun- hofer Institute for High Frequency Physics and Radar Techniques (FHR) conducts extensive research in the area of high frequency and radar technology. Its core research focuses on sensors for precise dis- tance regulation and positioning as well as imaging systems. The ap- plications range from systems for reconnaissance, surveillance, and protection to real-time capable sensors for traffic and navigation as well as quality assurance and non-destructive testing. The Fraunhofer Institute of Optron- ics, System Technologies and Image Exploitation (IOSB) studies and de- velops multi-sensor systems and software that support humans in their perception of and their inter- actions with the environment. This ranges from the generation and au- tomatic analysis of aerial and satel- lite images, e.g. of a disaster area, all the way to the sorting and qual- ity inspection of bulk goods such as coffee beans or minerals. FoodInSpector is able to scan chocolate bars and check a series of parameters. Photo: Fraunhofer FHR Kalorienarme Alternativen Neuartige Zucker im Fokus: Forschung zu Allulose und Cellobiose Die Anwendung von Zuckeralternativen er- forschen Wissenschaftler des Instituts für Lebensmitteltechnologie.NRW der Hoch- schule OWL im Projekt „Healthy Sugars“. Das Forschungsprojekt untersucht zwei neuartige Zucker: Allulose und Cellobiose. Allulose wird aus Maisstärke gewonnen und bisher in Asien und den USA produziert, wo sie als unbedenklich eingestuft ist. In Euro- pa ist sie noch nicht zugelassen. Ihre Süß- kraft liegt bei 70 Prozent derer von Haus- haltszucker. Cellobiose erreicht 20 Prozent der Süßkraft im Vergleich zum herkömmli- chen Zucker. Sie entsteht durch den Abbau von Cellulose durch beispielsweise Bakteri- en oder Pilze und kann unter anderem neue Möglichkeiten für Lactose-intolerante Ver- braucher eröffnen. „Durch das unterschiedliche Eigen- schaftsprofil beider Zucker ergeben sich komplementäre oder miteinander kombi- nierbare Einsatzfelder in Lebensmitteln. Gemeinsam ist beiden Zuckern jedoch der im Vergleich zur Saccharose deutlich gerin- gere Brennwert und glykämische Index“, sagt Professorin Ute Hermenau, Leiterin des Fachgebiets Backwarentechnologie. Das Forschungsprojekt zielt auf die Ent- wicklung der Herstellung von Allulose und Cellobiose sowie auf die Nutzungsmöglich- keiten der Zucker zur Saccharose- und da- mit zur Kalorienreduzierung in Getränken und Lebensmitteln. Ein Fokus liegt dabei auf den sensorischen und qualitativen Ei- genschaften des Endprodukts sowie auf den gesundheitlichen Auswirkungen und der Verträglichkeit der eingesetzten Stoffe. Entstehen sollen Reformulierungen der Zu- sammensetzungen der Produkte, die einen wichtigen Schritt auf dem Weg zur Markt- einführung markieren. Erforscht wird der Einsatz der beiden neuen Zucker in Geträn- ken und Backwaren. Das Team der Geträn- ketechnologie betrachtet gleichermaßen Getränke mit und ohne Alkohol. Beim Team der Backwarentechnologie reicht die Band- breite von Feinen Backwaren über Kleinge- bäcke bis zu Broten. Sie forschen an der Hochschule OWL an Alternativen zum Haushaltszucker – von links: Professorin Ute Hermen- au, Johanna von Rabenau und Profes- sor Jan Schneider Foto: Hochschule OWL / Katharina Thehos Sweet, bitter or fat? Study: genetics play a role in kids’ snacking patterns Whether your child asks for cra- ckers, cookies or veggies to snack on could be linked to genetics, ac- cording to new findings from the Guelph Family Health Study at the University of Guelph in Canada. Researcher Elie Chamoun investi- gated whether genetic variants in taste receptors related to sweet preference, fat taste sensitivity and aversion to bitter green leafy vegetables influence the snacks chosen by preschoolers. He found that nearly 80 per cent of preschoolers in the study carried at least one of these potential at-risk genotypes that could pre- dispose them to poor snacking habits. “Kids are eating a lot more snacks now than they used to, and we think looking at how genetics can be related to snacking behaviour is important to understanding increased obesity among kids,” said Chamoun, a PhD candidate in the Department of Human Health and Nutritional Sciences and a member of the Guelph Family Health Study. “This new research could help parents understand how their kids taste, and tailor their diet for better nutritional choices.” Published in the jour- nal Nutrients, the study looked at connections between the genes of the three at-risk taste recep- tors and linked them to snacking patterns among preschoolers. The study entailed tracking the day-to-day diets of nearly 50 preschoolers and found that one- third of the kids’ diets were made up of snacks. Chamoun also tes- ted the participants’ saliva to de- termine their genetic taste profi- le. Chamoun discovered that kids with a sweet tooth, who have the gene related to sweet taste prefe- rence, ate snacks with significant- ly more calories from sugar. They also ate those snacks mostly in the evening. “It’s likely these kids snacked mo- re in the evening because that’s when they are at home and have more access to foods with high sugar,” said Chamoun. The child- ren with the genetic variant rela- ted to fat taste sensitivity were found to consume snacks with higher energy density.