Traditional microbiological testing, the monitoring of contaminants and the analysis of different components such as fat, acidity, polyphenols, glucose etc in formulations are keeping food and beverage quality control laboratories increasingly busy.
QCL Scientific has been extending the capabilities of its rapid microbiology analysers and its FoodLab range of analysers, for testing a wide number of quality parameters that would usually require the use of difficult-to-handle chemicals by trained chemists in the most stringent laboratory conditions.
The QCL FoodLab solutions are designed to allow factory personnel outside the laboratory to obtain precise results in minutes using pre-filled test cuvettes, low-toxicity reagents, pre-calibrated instruments, and µl sample quantities. Critically, the FoodLab analysers do not require specific training and are supplied pre-calibrated.
Suitable for determining a variety of parameters in food such as milk, eggs, tomatoes, vegetable purée, cheese, dairy products, edible fats and oils, QCL’s FoodLab analyser range uses sophisticated spectrophotometric technology to measure changes in innovative reagents in order to provide accurate analysis of free fatty acids, peroxide value, lactic acid, cholesterol, chloride, hydrogen peroxide, ammonia and glucose, for example.
Pre-programmed tests are easily selected from the display menus and results are recorded by a built-in printer. The methods require minimal sample preparation or handling and utilise microscopic sample volumes (5-100 µl).
This simplicity allows the FoodLab to be used for real-time quality control when raw materials are purchased and stored, as well as during all the production steps.
The FoodLabFat, for example, can be used to control the quality of oils and fats at production lines in real time. It’s able to determine very low acidity values (range 0.01-24 expressed in gr as % of oleic acid) and low peroxides (range 0.1-550 mEqO2/Kg) with a minimum resolution of 0.01.
Scientific studies at the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences have used the FoodLabFat for determination of p-Anisidine Values (AnV) in the study Oxidative stability of deep-frying oils and Peroxide (PV) and Anisidine values (AnV) in the study Stability of high oleic vegetable oils towards light exposure.
FoodLabFat is suitable for analysing deep-frying oils, nuts, refined fat, dairy products, all vegetable oils, hard-shelled dry fruit, fish & alga oils and all animal fats.
QCL’s OxiTester, meanwhile, is a fast, simple and reliable analysis system that can be used to control the quality of vegetable oil in all stages of the production process. Again, it can be used to test oil by operators who have no experience in chemical tests, with no need for a dedicated laboratory.
The OxiTester K270 version is also able to measure K270 values in order to identify the presence of rectified oil that may have been added to virgin olive oil.
In Italy, the Unaprol (Italian National Union of Olive Oil Producers) has already selected OxiTester for monitoring the quality of production processes. Scientific studies have shown the OxiTester is highly effective for evaluating the antioxidant capacity of olive oils against the Rancimat method, and monitoring the qualitative changes of olive oils from fruits damaged by Bactrocera oleae.
Speed, cost (return on investment) and simplicity are behind each of QCL’s solutions that also include the SY-LAB BacTrac 4300 Rapid Microbiology System, which automatically detects or enumerates a wide range of microorganisms.
Based on an impedance measurement method, BacTrac allows two impedance measurements per sample, the M-value (media) and E-value (electrode), which can be used individually or in combination to provide the growth profile of samples.
BacTrac is expandable and can simultaneously test up to 768 samples in up to 24 different temperature zones.
“Traditional microbiology, for example, takes two to seven days depending on the organism,” says QCL’s head of product management, Jamie Duncan, who highlighted that the BacTrac 4300’s measurement technique can provide superior sensitivity to microbial metabolites and allow measurements in highly selective media. “It also requires a skilled technician and a well-equipped laboratory with apparatus such as autoclaves, incubators, agar, petri dishes etc.
“Achieving faster results allows for the positive release of product much quicker, reducing storage costs and effectively increasing production capacity. Systems that are easy to use can be installed in or near the factory and used by production staff rather than lab staff, reducing laboratory workload and speeding up response times.”
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