No matter the technological advancements that have been introduced over the years in the field of food safety and the increased quality controls all along the food processing lines, foreign bodies and contaminants still end up in the food we eat on a daily basis
This condition generates food recalls practically every week, with relevant implications on the consumer health, the costs for the products recall, the brand image of the food producer and, last but not least, the environment because of the food waste
Hereunder some facts:
- in the USA food contamination and products recall cost food manufacturers over 50 USD/bn each year
- a survey has brought out that 15% of consumers don’t buy again a product that was recalled and 21% of the consumers don’t buy for months any product from a food manufacturer that has undergone a product recall
- the negative impact on the environment resulting from the food waste, just consider that the recall of a single 125gr jar of tomato results in the waste of 223 l of water and 1.5 kg of CO2
In parallel with the above, consumers are becoming increasingly sensitive about the quality and safety of the food they eat.
Apparently, it seems as if there is no concrete solution to drastically improve the issue of food safety. The fact is that there is indeed a solution and it has been developed by Xnext SpA with XSpectra, the most advanced real-time food inspection detector.
XSpectra is a disruptive technology as it overcomes the weaknesses of conventional inspection solutions, thus determining a relevant technological leap. Based on X-ray multi-energy analysis, XSpectra is capable to analyze in few milliseconds the physical-chemical features of the product and identify the presence of foreign bodies currently not detectable.
The result of over 9 years of R&D, XSpectra is a very complex system, combining 3 high innovations: Photonics, Nuclear Electronics and Machine Learning Artificial Intelligence Algorithms.
The aim of the project is the setting up of the industrial and commercial scale up of the technology and put in place actions to minimize the time-to-market and surge fast the visibility of XSpectra. Specifically, the main objectives are summarized below:
- putting a spotlight on the technology
- creating demo centers to attract prospect customers
- identifying reference champions for sponsoring and validating the technology
- implementing an aggressive commercial plan
XSpectra is beneficial for: the food manufacturers, as it provides the highest safety levels and improves significantly the production efficiency (minimizing the product batch discard as well as the costs for product recalls); for the consumers as it guarantees the highest safety standards for the quality of foodstuff; for the environment as it helps to reduce significantly the amount of wasted food from the production line
