In mid-February ANSTO attended a meeting at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to discuss and produce recommendations for the development of a new Coordinated Research Project (CRP) on Seafood Origin and Authenticity using Nuclear and Related Technologies to progress the IAEA flagship initiative Atoms4Food.
Dr. Debashish Mazumder (pictured left), Project Lead for Food Provenance, who represented ANSTO participated in the consultation meeting and provided advice on the development of the proposed CRP project. He shared ANSTO's pioneering research in the application of nuclear analysis techniques to authenticate the origin of seafood.
A total of seventeen experts from Australia, Asia, Europe, Africa, and Latin America, including experts from the IAEA and Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN, took part.
Seafood products are among the most traded food commodities globally. Since 1961, per capita seafood consumption has doubled, and it is expected to double again by 2050. Fraud in these sectors poses a major global challenge, costing billions of dollars and negatively impacting food security, the environment, and businesses.
Consumers are increasingly interested in making informed purchasing decisions and ensuring that the products they buy are authentic and come from safe and sustainably managed sources. The Seafood Origin Authentication CRP will address some of the most pressing challenges in the global seafood sector by developing methods that utilise nuclear analysis techniques.
ANSTO is at the forefront of food provenance research in Australia and supports projects in the region through the Forum for Nuclear Cooperation in Asia.
"Australia's participation in the CRP will greatly enhance our understanding of provenance in the seafood supply chain and advance Australian's contributions to achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals," said Dr Mazumder.
