3D-printed flexural sensor devices for smart packaging of agrifood products

Smart packaging of food products is a new promising technology aiming to the preservation of consumer’s health and safety while prolonging the products’ self-life in transport and mass storage. Smart packaging can be applied by using chemical and/or biological sensors for monitoring indicators associated with bacterial growth and spoilage, as well as pathogen contamination. Poultry meat is a nutrient-rich matrix which supports the growth of various micro-organisms and the extended storage time can allow the proliferation of different microbial species on meat surfaces. The nature of the packaging approaches and storage factors can dictate the nature of the spoilage that transpires, with respect to the dominant microflora of the end-product. In the present study an innovative approach is explored for the development of cost-effective 3D-printed biosensors for monitoring known indicators associated with bacterial growth and spoilage in poultry meat. Spoilage was also independently measured using MSI and FT-IR spectroscopic methods. The development of a protocol for pathogen screening was also investigated with real-time polymerase chain reactions (qPCR).