Vision-based system will help meat and poultry processors identify trace amounts of fecal material.
In the mid-1990s, microbiologists with the USDA’s Agricultural Research
Service and a chemist from Iowa State University applied fluorescent spectroscopy
to identify that indicator of fecal contamination on cattle carcasses. While
others have applied light reflectance to address this food safety issue, the
researchers were the first to develop a system that measures radiated light
from a surface exposed to laser-induced light of a specific wavelength. By shining
a blue light on the carcass, the still-light reactive pheophorbide emits a red
light.