| Summary: |
Excessive salt intake is one of the major concerns of modern society, having a direct impact on several serious pathologies, such as higher blood pressure and an increase of mortality/morbidity related to cardiovascular disease. Therefore, it is of extreme importance to introduce in the market new mechanisms and devices for salt quantification and evaluation in food preparation.
Nowadays, there are several techniques which allow salt measurements. Nonetheless, they still present some limitations, such as lack of portability, time-consuming analysis and unsuitability for complex food matrices measurements. These constraints have motivated the development of several research studies, which have resulted in an innovative laboratorial device for salt quantification.
Although this device represents a breakthrough in salt quantification techniques, there is still a need to improve it, both at hardware and software levels, which can make this device appropriate for industrial and commercial applications.
This project aims to demonstrate, in a real context, the use of a portable and user friendly device for salt quantification of food matrices based on the Ion Selective Electrode (ISE) methodology, in 4 different application scenarios: The Directorate-General for Education, Regional Health Administration Units, Collective Catering Companies, and the Economic and Food Safety Authority.
Promoted by the consortium formed by Evoleo Technologies and the University of Porto (through the FCNAUP and FEUP schools), the project will consist in demonstrating and optimizing the innovative device in a real context and with users, allowing the introduction the market introduction of a portable, simple and reliable device for on-site measurement (e.g. kitchens) of salt-levels in complex food matrices. |