Review of scientific research results in identification of plant raw materials in food products

Abstract

Currently, the science-based capabilities have been generated to develop and test various identification methods of food products and reveal adulteration using advanced technique and processes. This article reviews researches and developments to identify the plant raw materials in food products based on morphological, anatomic, physical and chemical test methods and the latest DNA-technologies. Review of physical, chemical, anatomic and morphological test methods to identify raw materials both as discrete and as the food content validated that these methods are useful to differ the herbal material with apparent specific peculiarities in structure and chemical content, though, in most cases, they are not adequate enough to differentiate the used raw material by species and genus. In the sphere where DNA-technologies are applied to identify the plant raw material, various methods for DNA extraction, requirements to DNA-targets, methods to optimize the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) stages have been developed; a range of developed methods are in place for species identification of plant-based additives in food products by species which is rather relevant in view of promotion in the market of cheaper substitutions for food ingredient components. The review of national and international scientific publications and intellectual property items to work with PCR-based species identification of the fruit raw material showed that this method differs in high specificity and is practically the only method of species identification available.