Species determination in food and feed

To ensure the traceability and safety of food and feed products, they should only be composed of and contain ingredients included in the list of ingredients. This includes not containing material originating from other plant, fungi, or animal species.

The need of species verification might be relevant to:

• Plant-based raw materials and products (herbs, spices, fungi)

• Meat and meat products

• Feed products based on meat

As with most cases of food adulteration, the species may be falsified to substitute expensive ingredients with less expensive ones. Non-intended ingredients may also end up in the product due to negligence or faulty production processes.

Species determination is performed using PCR techniques that detect the DNA of species present in the food sample. Approaches can vary depending on the methodology:

• One of the most common approaches is to check whether the sample contains DNA of species that similar products are most commonly adulterated with. For example, a beef product claimed to contain only beef can be screened for the presence of pig, horse, and poultry DNA.

• Next-generation sequencing methods and Sanger sequencing can be applied to get more detailed information about the species present, including the relative species composition of the sample.

For a successful analysis, the sample must contain intact DNA. In highly processed food and feed items, there's a chance of the sample not containing enough intact DNA to perform analyses.

Contact our experts for more information and a quote tailored to verifying the origin of your product.