A first-of-its-kind handheld device and mobile app which provides information about the freshness and quality of meat, poultry, and fish launched today. The prototype device, named “PERES,” is also featured on international crowdfunding site Indiegogo, where its developers aim to raise funds to back further product development and bring it to market.
Food-related illness is a global challenge. The World Health Organization (WHO) states that more than 200 diseases are spread through food, and in the US it is estimated that there are 76 million cases of food borne illness, resulting in 325,000 hospitalizations and 5,000 deaths, each year……
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To operate the device, users simply point it towards the food product and click a button; within a few seconds, they receive information on their smartphone or tablet about the product, including whether or not the product is fresh, whether it may have been left unrefrigerated, and whether there may be a risk of food poisoning.
This information is invaluable in helping people make informed choices about the food that they eat and gives them peace of mind before buying, and eating, a piece of meat, fish or poultry.
With the European Commission estimating that 90 million tonnes of food are wasted in Europe each year, the team behind PERES intend that the device will also help prevent unnecessary food wastage in the home. As well as giving users confidence in the freshness and quality of their food, the aim is that users can save money that they might have ordinarily spent on supermarket food that was already partway through the ‘rotting process.’ (more)
Source: the Lithuania Tribune