Agroisolab UK launches SIRA food authenticity service

The firm is a subsidiary of Longhand Data (LHD) which has been working for eight years with German company, Agroisolab, to develop the method as a high-volume way of testing the country of origin for a range of meat and grocery products.

Stable Isotope Reference Analysis (SIRA) uses laboratory analysis to test the declared origin of food and has been launched in York this month before being rolled out worldwide with legal support from Harrowells Solicitors.

SIRA is a method based on comparing unknown values with a set of known values.

Building dataset of samples​

To test the origin of produce, a reference database of samples from different locations must be built first to ensure there are values to compare an unknown test sample with.

It verifies geographical authenticity by showing whether a test sample is consistent or inconsistent with the geographical reference database.

Where a test sample is inconsistent it becomes an investigatory tool to follow the problem through a supply chain and identify the point of fault.

SIRA also verifies authenticity of labelling claims such as ‘organic’ by showing whether or not an animal has consumed an organic diet or whether a product has been grown with mineral fertiliser.

Agroisolab UK and Agroisolab GmbH will deliver SIRA authentication by measuring naturally-occurring stable isotopes of hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, carbon, sulphur and strontium, which have ratios that are virtually site specific.    

When all the data is combined it can be used to differentiate food from different countries of origin, or different regions of origin within a country.

LHD and Agroisolab established a working agreement in 2006. In 2009, The British Pig Executive (BPEX), contracted LHD and Agroisolab to build a reference library of British pig producers and the next year LHD secured government funding to build a library of British egg producers.

In 2012 LHD and Agroisolab won a commercial contract to authenticate UK pork products at retail and in the same year Agroisolab achieved 100 reference database entries for different products.

Traceability beyond paperwork​

Roger Young, Agroisolab CEO, said SIRA was first used to scale in the UK by Mick Sloyan’s team at AHDB pork (formerly the British Pig Executive).

“​Users of the technique are ultimately people who care about where food is truly from, support origin labelling claims and who want more evidence of traceability beyond accepting paperwork at face value,” ​he told FoodQualityNews.

“Use of SIRA in the UK has grown more slowly than on the continent, but the surge in the demand is encouraging that members of the food industry are beginning to care more about due diligence systems, protecting consumers and being certain of the provenance of their goods.​

“Regarding cost, SIRA is comparable with many existing assays used in authenticity. As SIRA can be used as an investigatory tool to direct users to focus on particular parts of their supply chains, it offers a cost-effective approach to direct audits to relevant areas rather than just auditing the supply chain randomly.”​

For most products DNA and genomic analyses are not applicable to testing products off-the-shelf as DNA isn’t tied to a location, it’s just associated with it, said Young.

“For example the strawberries grown in Kent may have identical genetics to those grown in the Netherlands. Where genomics does show some promise is in timber, but this is because trees don’t move,” ​he said.

“SIRA is a far more straightforward way of determining the origin of a product, it looks at what a product is made of. What food is made of is dictated by what is immediately available in nature – which is directly tied to geography.”​

Horse meat scandal lessons​

Young, also Longhand Data managing director, a biologist and former corporate farmer, said when consumers buy meat or other products, they have a legal right to know that what they are buying is correctly labelled.

“To knowingly misrepresent or give false declaration of origin, can be a criminal offence. Involving the law often means that the retailer and supplier end up in court which is hugely damaging to customer confidence and their brand values,” ​he said.

“The ‘horse-gate’ scandal showed that paperwork can be fooled. Laboratory analysis to authenticate the origin of food is accurate, hard to subvert, faster and more cost-effective than conventional traceability processes.”​

Young said it is contracted to two of the five major supermarkets.

“We already have major industry bodies such as ​BPEX, part of the Agricultural and Horticultural Development Board (AHDB), signed up. We also have a contract with Associated Beef Producers (ABP) and are well on the way to building the biggest UK beef database.”​ 

Agroisolab UK has six staff, including two scientists and, with its German counterpart, will test up to 200 samples a week.

When asked about that figure, Young said it is a reflection of what the expected demands of the food industry are over the next year but if the market has a greater demand, it will invest more to meet it.