Created cutting-edge technology to detect contaminants on farms and at food processing facilities to prevent foodborne illnesses that sicken millions of people in the U.S. every year.
To prevent foodborne illnesses, a team from the Agricultural Research Service is using drones, machine learning and artificial intelligence that together can provide real-time data on contaminants in water, soil and at processing facilities to keep them from getting into the nation’s food supply.
Scientist Yakov Pachepsky is successfully employing drones and other state-of-the art technology to monitor farm irrigation ponds for evidence of potential pathogens while his colleague, Moon Kim, has worked with industry to develop and commercialize a hand-held scanner that detects pathogens on food, utensils and other surfaces at processing and other facilities. “These new tools are pioneering critical efforts to control pathogens causing foodborne illness and protect food safety and security throughout the production chain,” said former ARS Administrator Simon Liu.
Liu said the work of Pachepsky and Moon involves using AI, machine learning and modeling to create sensing technologies that emit hundreds of visible and invisible bands of light that provide data for identifying risks associated with the pathogens that cause foodborne illnesses. The use of light waves enables quicker, broader and more cost-effective monitoring than physically testing soil and water samples, he said.
The federal government estimates that there are 48 million cases of foodborne illness in the U.S. every year, resulting in some 128,000 hospitalizations and 3,000 deaths.
“What Yakov Pachepsky and Moon Kim are doing is exactly what we need more of—finding ways to collect better data, process it efficiently and use it to protect public health before problems arise,” said Matthew Fields, said a Montana State University professor of microbiology and cell biology. “Food safety starts long before food reaches the table.”
The team’s technology is being commercialized and is gaining international interest, particularly in Europe and Latin America.
“Their efforts are helping prevent major foodborne outbreaks by improving traceability, monitoring and risk mitigation,” said Fartash Vasefi, chief technical officer with SafetySpect Inc., which has commercialized Kim’s scanner. “They have the expertise, the network and the vision to drive real change.”
The team’s work to bridge engineering and environmental science has far-reaching implications, not only for agriculture but also for emergency response to the ongoing avian flu epidemic. The team is now testing if its detection technologies can identify contamination in chicken coops and free-range poultry areas.
“We are really passionate about developing cutting-edge technologies to help the U.S. food industry and provide safe food for public consumption,” Kim said. “It’s not about personal recognition. It’s about showing that government research plays a vital role in protecting food safety and public health.”
“Food safety is about more than what happens in the kitchen,” added Pachepsky. “It starts with water, the soil and the entire agricultural system.”