An Electric Tongue Could be the Future of Food Safety

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A team at Penn State University has developed an “electronic tongue” that combines atom-thin sensors with artificial intelligence to detect food spoilage, contamination, and potential fraud minutes. The scientists used sensors made from graphene, which is a very thin form of carbon that’s just one atom thick and conducts electricity exceptionally well. They paired these sensors with artificial intelligence that can learn patterns. The sensors on the so-called electronic tongue send electrical signals to an artificial neural network that analyzes the data together, this creates a system that’s remarkably good at detecting tiny differences between similar liquids. In essence, the system mimics how humans taste and process flavors. Take milk as an example. The neural network can determine the varying water content of the milk and, in that context, determine if any indicators of degradation are meaningful enough to be considered a food safety issue. The system was remarkably accurate at distinguishing between different coffee blends and even different varieties of Coke including regular, diet, and caffeine-free. The system, which was outlined in the prestigious journal Nature, is also sensitive at detecting harmful chemicals in food and water, so could be useful in helping prevent contaminated items from reaching consumers. While this technology shows great promise, its capabilities are currently limited by its training data. Also, the study focused primarily on liquid samples, leaving questions about its effectiveness with solid foods.