LUCKNOW In a breakthrough for food safety and quality assurance, researchers at the CSIR-Central Institute of Medicinal & Aromatic Plants (CIMAP) have developed a model capable of instantly verifying the authenticity of herbs and spices.
By combining high-tech chemical scanning technology with advanced machine learning, the newly developed system can detect the adulteration of food essentials with other ingredients in under a minute.
CH Ratnashekhar, one of the key scientists on the research, underscored that the research has been conducted on herbs and spices like basil, turmeric and ashwagandha.
“Herbs and spices like basil, turmeric and ashwagandha are used for their medicinal properties. They are an expanding market and expected to expand further till 2030 with India being one of the major players. But because harvesting them is expensive, they have become targets of adulteration — often diluted with various materials, which diminishes their benefits. Traditional testing methods require complex sample preparation and are time-consuming and expensive,” said Ratnashekhar.
The process readied by scientists requires zero sample preparation, operates at room temperature, and takes only a few minutes to scan and provide results.
{{/usCountry}}The process readied by scientists requires zero sample preparation, operates at room temperature, and takes only a few minutes to scan and provide results.
{{/usCountry}}The raw data was fed into machine learning algorithms trained to recognise species-specific variations and flag any structural anomalies caused by dilution. The study rigorously tested varieties of basil, turmeric and ashwagandha against market samples intentionally adulterated with varying amounts. The system achieved 96% accuracy, sensitivity and reliability rate in catching fakes.
“After the research, the institute has replaced older testing methods, which could take over half an hour to one hour and required massive amounts of chemical preparation, with the new digital test. This test provides an opportunity for food inspectors and honest manufacturers to easily discover food fraud, ensuring that what lands on consumers’ plates or in the supplement cabinet is real and healthy,” said CSIR-CIMAP director Prabodh Trivedi.