Recent development in the application of analytical techniques for the traceability and authenticity of food of plant origin

The traceability of agro-products are very crucial as the food with know and guaranteed origin charged a high premium; meanwhile, the authenticity of the food product is also very necessary, since the adulteration of agro-products with cheap ingredients or chemicals pose a serious health threat to the consumer. Therefore there is clearly need to demonstrate these authenticity problems by modern analytical techniques. This review attempted to highlight the current overview in the application of analytical techniques such as liquid and gas chromatography, isotope ratio and elemental analysis, spectroscopic, DNA based and sensor technologies for the authentication of food of plant origin, with a special focus on geographical origin traceability and authenticity during the last five years. Papers cited here mainly include fruits, cereals, pulses, tea, coffee, spices, edible oil, fruit juices, and alcoholic beverages. The effectiveness of these techniques in laboratory and industrial level and also their advantages and drawbacks are discussed.