A short update on the advantages, applications and limitations of hyperspectral and chemical imaging in food authentication

Around the world, the food industry needs to maintain high quality and safety standards in order to satisfy consumers demand for healthy foods and to trace the origin of raw materials and products that are used during food manufacture. These objectives can be achieved by applying analytical methods and techniques that are able to provide information about composition, structure, physicochemical properties, and sensory characteristics of foods. Modern techniques and methods based on spectroscopy (near infrared (NIR), mid infrared (MIR), Raman) are highly desirable due to their low cost and easy to implement, and often requiring minimal sample preparation. This paper reviews some of the advantages and recent applications of hyperspectral and chemical imaging to discriminate and authenticate foods.