Poultry safety boosted by new hyperspectral imaging system

The US Agricultural Research Service (ARS) said it has improved a hyperspectral imaging system so that it can detect small amounts of fecal contamination in poultry. Hyperspectral imaging is a technique that combines digital imaging with spectroscopy, creating individual wavelengths of light that pinpoint contaminants.

It was developed by ARS scientists working at the body’s Quality and Safety Assessment Research Unit in Athens, Georgia, in conjunction with Stork Food Systems, a manufacturer of poultry-processing equipment in the state.

Poultry carcasses​

A prototype system was installed in a poultry plant in order to evaluate its performance in detecting contaminated carcasses under commercial conditions. In the trial, carcasses were imaged after evisceration but before washing at a rate of 150 birds per minute. The system ran for several days without hardware or software problems and demonstrated its feasibility, said ARS scientist Bosoon Park.

The team in Georgia is now collaborating with colleagues from the Environmental Microbial and Food Safety Laboratory in Maryland, which has developed an on-line system to “differentiate systematically diseased poultry carcasses from wholesome ones”​, said a statement from the ARS. The method uses the same hyperspectral imaging technology but at different wavelengths.

Combining systems​

The ARS groups and their industry partner are now merging the fecal-detection and diseased-carcass-detection systems onto a common platform that includes a line-scan hyperspectral imaging camera, lighting, and operating and detection software.

“Merging the two systems will aid in commercialization by creating one interchangeable imaging system that can be installed in different locations of the processing line to solve two separate and significant processing problems”,​ said the ARS.

It added that combining the two systems will allow processors to more easily integrate such a system into their operations. The team plans to have a new prototype tested by the end of 2009.

In addition, the researchers in Athens also developed and implemented a new image-processing method to identify and remove false-positive readings.

The ARS, which is part of the US Department of Agriculture, said the projects its priority of ensuring food safety.