Federal government invests over $2.4M in food safety tech

The federal government grants P&P Optica $2,430,023 through the AgriInnovate Program to help build and present its innovative, Canadian-made food inspection technology for meat processors.

P&P Optica has developed a smart imaging system to inspect meat automatically on the production line.

The system analyzes the composition of food, evaluating properties like tenderness, freshness and its protein, water and fat content. It can detect imperfections and eliminate foreign bodies like plastic, bones and rubber. These tasks are done right on the production line in real time, generating information for processors to use to help improve their products, manage suppliers and optimize production.

“Canada’s processors are adopting new technologies to increase production and offer quality products across the country and the world. P&P Optica’s technology gives processors essential information that provides many benefits, including helping to reduce food waste,” said Marie-Claude Bibeau, agriculture and agri-food minister.

This investment will support P&P Optica to build demonstration units that allow them to present their technology to potential users. The investment will also build a demonstration room to optimize their technology for use by potential meat processing clients. This hyperspectral imaging technology evaluates the safety and freshness of meat products by analyzing the colour and moisture. It also gives a large range of data to processors.

“P&P Optica is grateful for the support of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and AgriFood through the AgriInnovate program. PPO is focused on working with food processors to improve the safety and quality of our food supply, while reducing waste,” said Olga Pawluczyk, CEO, P&P Optica.