Applications of miniaturized and portable near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) for inspection and control of meat and meat products

In this review, the principles and usage of NIRS are described, emphasizing the importance of portable NIRS as a rapid analysis system in the meat industry. The miniaturized and portable NIRS instruments offer a great potential for on-site monitoring quality control not only in the meat sector but also all other food and agro-industries. The mobility of these devices, enabling in situ, robust, on-site, and product-to-product on-line inspection and control, are their major advantages. The emergence of miniature and portable NIRS systems allows establishment of rapid protocols, which might increase rigorous quality control, implying that food quality can be routinely monitored along the entire logistic chain. For meat-value chain, the possibility to implement portable NIRS systems at any point along the logistic chain could dramatically reduce the number of serious scandals related to meat quality and safety. Conversely, results obtained with these instruments are unrealistic in some applications, stressing the need for more applications with diversity in sample presentation and measurement techniques. This will lead to improvements in their performance and help to establish more robust models. In the near future, these devices might stand as promising alternatives to large, expensive, and benchtop types in food analysis, inspection, and control.