Use of Near Infrared Spectroscopy in the Meat Industry

The Near Infrared region of the energy spectrum was first discovered by Hershel in the year 1800. The principles of NIR is based on light absorption of specific organic chemical bonds. The absorption at each wavelength is measured and a spectre is obtained. The spectre is then treated mathematically and with the absorption data is converted to absolute units via a calibration. In the last two decades it has developed dramatically. With the invention of computers and the ability to treat a large amount of data in a very short time the use of NIR for many different purposes has developed very fast. During the last decade with the aid of very powerful PC's the application of NIR technology has become even more widespread. Now or days development of very robust calibrations can be done in a relatively short time with a minimum of resources. The use of Near Infrared Spectroscopy (NIR) in the Meat industry is relatively new. The first installations were taken into operation in the 80ties. The Meat Industry in often referred to as rather conservative and slow to embrace new technologies, they stay with the old and proven methods. The first NIR instruments used by the Meat Industry, and most other industries, were multipurpose build, which means that the sample presentation was not well suited to this particular application, or many other applications for that sake. As the Meat Industry grows and develops to meet the demands of the modern markets, they realise the need for better control of processes and final products. From the early 90 ties and onward the demand for 'rear time' rapid results starts growing, and some suppliers of NIR instruments (and instruments based on other technologies, like X-ray) start to develop and manufacture instrumentation dedicated to the particular needs of the Meat Industry. Today it is estimated that there are approximately 2000 rapid instruments placed in the Meat industry world-wide. By far most of these are used as at-line or laboratory installations, but the trend and need is moving towards real on-line or in-line solutions. NIR is the most cost effective and reproducible analytical procedure available for the twenty first century.