Innoscentia
Product microbiological and sensory shelf-life labelling and app
Description
Innoscentia carries out product microbiological and sensory shelf-life analyses for the evaluation of food products to determine their shelf life based on microbial growth and sensory characteristics (such as taste, smell, texture and appearance). Such analyses can help in understanding how long a product remains safe and acceptable for consumption, aiding in accurate shelf-life determination and, subsequently, reductions in food waste. Its sensors come in the form of labels that are attached to packaging and show the level of freshness, either visually directly on the label, through a digital smartphone app or as part of a larger system. The mobile app offers detailed information and data on food freshness drawn from reactive ink labels and provides real-time updates and insights into the microbial activity within food packages.
Technology
The core product is a gas-sensing label (analogue or digital) that tracks food freshness in real time by detecting the gases emitted by bacteria as food degrades. The label changes colour or transmits data via Near-Field Communication (NFC) indicating whether or not the product is still safe to consume. Innoscentia operates a mobile app to support its dynamic shelf-life labelling system that works with digital labels and NFC technologies.
Target
Innoscentia operates on a business-to-business (B2B) basis, working primarily with food producers and retailers in the implementation of its labelling technologies.
Business model
Innoscentia AB has received funding from Vinnova and LU Innovation. No public information is available on the costs involved.
Impact
Innoscentia unlocks lost shelf-life by supporting the packaging and food sectors in optimizing their value chains. A prolonged shelf life of only 2 days could reduce retail waste by up to 50 percent and household waste up to 60 percent, with obvious benefits. Innoscentia has been recognized with numerous awards, such as the EAT-Forum Global Innovation Award in 2016 (https://www.innoscentia.com/).
Partners
Fresh Field Chicken; The Emballator Innovation Center; Ynvisible
Four Betters
Better nutrition
