Scots scientists develop smart packaging that tells you if food is off

PACKAGING which changes colour to warn consumers that food is starting to go "off" is being developed by researchers at a Scottish university.

• Professor Andrew Mills is leading the research. Half the food binned in Scotland is edible. Picture: PA

A new type of indicator made of "intelligent plastics" alerts people when there is a risk because food packaging is damaged, has gone beyond its "best before" date, or has been poorly refrigerated.

About 8.3 million tonnes of food is thrown out in the UK each year - most of which is fit to eat.

In Scotland, consumers bin 566,000 tonnes of food worth more than 1 billion annually - an average of 430 per household.

Half of the food binned in Scotland is still edible and includes 31,000 tonnes of milk and 25,000 tonnes of bread each year.

Freshness indicators are usually labels which are inserted into a package, but they are expensive to produce.

Researchers at the University of Strathclyde are examining ways of creating an indicator which is an integral part of the packaging, thus cutting the cost.

"Smart" particles in the plastic respond to the decomposing products produced by fish and meat. Different dyes will be used to warn that the foodstuff is "off" or packaging is damaged. The research will then expand to look at indicators for dairy and bread.

Professor Andrew Mills, who is heading the research team, said: "At the moment, we throw out far too much food, which is environmentally and economically damaging.

"Modified atmosphere packaging is being used increasingly to contain the growth of organisms which spoil food, but the costs of the labels currently used with it are substantial. We are aiming to eliminate this cost with new plastics for the packaging industry.

"We hope that this will reduce the risk of people eating food which is no longer fit for consumption and help prevent unnecessary waste of food.

"We also hope it will have a direct and positive impact on the meat and seafood industries."

Prof Mills added that by giving an unambiguous sign food is beginning to perish, the indicators could resolve confusion about the significance of "best before" dates and "sell-by'" dates.

A spokeswoman for the Food Standards Agency said: "Foodborne disease is a major cause of illness in the UK population, affecting around a million people each year. Although the majority of cases are mild, in serious cases it can lead to hospitalisation and even death." A spokesman for Zero Waste Scotland, a Scottish Government agency aiming to reduce waste and promote recycling, said consumers tended to buy and cook more food than needed.

"Our Love Food Hate Waste campaign provides consumers with lots of useful information and advice about how to plan, prepare and store food better to avoid waste.

"We are working to simplify date labelling and we have also backed a number of packaging innovations to prolong the shelf life of products and to ensure that less is wasted."

The university's 18-month project, which received 325,000 from the Scottish Enterprise proof of concept programme, is expected to attract commercial interest across the food industry.