A Nutritious New Year: Using FT-NIR to Perform Nutrition Analysis In-House

📂 Case overview: A client with an expanding portfolio of nutraceutical products seeks the help of the detectives to cut costs and increase their profit margin. Nancy Beef has been sent to assist and unveil her expertise in unveiling macronutrients.

The detectives reconvene after a short festive break. Unlike last year, when the focus of their conversation was on how much food they – or, more specifically, Cornlumbo - had eaten, this year, the topic of conversation is all about health. Miss Mapple’s words about moderation in their fat analysis workshop had paid off! As is typical in January, the detectives are now obsessed with New Year’s resolutions, especially ones relating to fitness.

As Shallot Holmes arrives, Cornlumbo is telling the detectives about his new AI voice assistant he uses for everything. He had asked it for a detailed workout plan and nutrition guide that he printed out, but Miss Mapple is skeptical about relying on technology for such things and raises concerns about the AI hallucinating and making mistakes. Shallot is happy to hear about the detectives’ newfound interest, as he has a new case that is ideal for them. A nutraceutical company that creates protein powders, nutrition bars, and other health food products is experiencing a very busy period, possibly related to all the New Year’s resolutions. They recently expanded their product line to cater to the booming interest, but the expansion of their portfolio has brought an increase in costs. Shallot explains the predicament to the detectives and asks them what they can do to help.

The detectives are full of questions, mostly related to the nutrition products and how they could use them to stay healthy. Shallot keeps them on topic by explaining the costs associated with the analysis of nutrients. The company currently sends all its products to third parties for protein content and the quality control of raw materials. “Well, surely they could save money performing the analysis in-house,” says Nancy Beef. “You’re right, that would save them money, but the company has no experience performing such analysis,” says Holmes. “Why don’t we teach them,” suggests Eggcule Poirot. Shallot Holmes agrees, but the company is based in Canada, so it would cost too much to send all the detectives. “I think only one of us should go,” says Holmes. Immediately, all the detectives get very excited and offer reasons why it should be them that gets to go.

The company currently sends all its products to third parties for protein content and the quality control of raw materials and could save money performing the analysis in-house

Shallot hatches a plan. “OK, detectives, as you are all so keen, I’d like you to solve a Kitchen Conundrum! I’d like you to produce a perfectly balanced, tasty, and nutritionally complete meal using the ingredients we have in our kitchen in 30 minutes; GO!” says Homes. Cornlumbo, keen to show off the prowess of his new AI voice assistant, looks at Miss Mapple, “I’ll show you just how good my voice assistant is – I shall tell it what ingredients we have, and it will tell me exactly what to do,” he shouts while running toward the kitchen.

Determined to show off his scientific prowess, Eggcule decides to make a meal whereby every nutrient is present in equal quantities, believing that achieving this perfect equilibrium will result in the most nutritionally balanced meal possible. Armed with a calculator, a nutritional chart, and a scale, he gets to work. Meanwhile, Nancy Beef and Miss Mapple decide to work together as they don’t have much time. They don’t have any fancy plans and just focus on healthy ingredients made as tasty as possible.

The 30 minutes is up, and it’s time for Shallot to judge the meals. First up is Cornlumbo with his stew. Shallot takes a sniff of the stew, which smells positively oceanic. The stew is also teeming with ingredients. Looking bewildered, Shallot investigates the dish. There are vegetables, including carrots, onions, kale, and artichokes, floating alongside bananas, apples, and pineapple. Amid the chaos was beef, chicken, and pork, as well as pasta, rice, cheese, and yogurt. He tentatively tries a spoonful and immediately spits it out. “How much salt did you use Cornlumbo?” shouts Holmes. “Umm… let me see, I printed out the recipe from the assistant,” says Cornlumbo. He runs over and checks. “Ohh, umm, it errr, it says a pinch on the printout, but I thought it said a pound of salt,” says Cornlumbo sheepishly. Shallot looks at the printout, and it appears that the AI, having been given all the ingredients in the kitchen, thought it had to use every ingredient!

Next up was Eggcule, who also had a Frankenstein meal. In his attempt to literally balance the nutrients, he had produced an odd combination of equal parts avocado (for fat), chicken breast (for protein), bran (for fiber), and spirulina (for vitamins). Shallot tried the dish, which was quite possibly nutritionally balanced but tasted rather awful.

It was time for Miss Mapple and Nancy Beef, who presented Shallot with a simple chicken salad with olive oil, lemon, mustard, celery, and a few walnuts that added a nice crunch. Not only was the dish nutritionally balanced, but it was also delicious. Shallot ate the entire dish before declaring Miss Mapple and Nancy Beef winners. “But they can’t both go to Canada; you said only one of us can go,” says Cornlumbo. “That’s ok, we decided beforehand that Nancy would go,” says Miss Mapple. And with that, it was set, and Nancy packed her bags for Canada.

When arriving at the nutraceutical company, young Nancy was met by a room full of mostly men who seemed perplexed at the sight of such a young woman consultant. “Where’s Shallot Holmes? I thought he would be here,” says the owner. Nancy felt nervous but was confident in her knowledge and kept her wits about her. She explains why she is on her own and asks about the problems they are having. After being told about the high cost of third-party testing, Nancy explains her plan to develop an in-house testing facility. She explains the FT-Spectrometer that the company could use and suddenly, it is all the men who seem nervous. She can tell they have no idea what spectroscopy is, so she gives them a quick explanation.

“The FT-NIR spectrometer operates on the principle of near-infrared spectroscopy, where light in the near-infrared range – 800 to 2500 nm – is absorbed by materials. This absorption is characteristic of the molecular composition of the substance,” explains Nancy. One of the clients sheepishly asks what the FT stands for, and Nancy calmly tells them that, unlike conventional NIR, FT-NIR uses a mathematical process known as the Fourier Transform. This process converts the raw data – the light absorbed at different wavelengths – into a spectrum that represents the molecular absorption and scattering in the sample. Some FT-NIR machines are very modular and flexible allowing for a range of measurement cells and accessories, making it versatile for different types of samples, including solids and liquids – ideal for a nutraceutical company with a wide range of products. “This all sounds quite expensive, and how are we supposed to be able to understand all the complex science and mathematics,” asks the owner. Nancy offers a detailed ROI breakdown for the client and explains how they would easily recoup the money spent in time. As for science and mathematics, Nancy offers to help the company set up and calibrate the machines and explain how to perform the analysis. They are very grateful and set about getting the necessary equipment.

An FT-NIR spectrometer operates on the principle of near-infrared spectroscopy, where light in the near-infrared range – 800 to 2500 nm – is absorbed by materials. This absorption is characteristic of the molecular composition and structure of the substance.

The company acquires an FT-NIR spectrometer with a solids measurement cell, and the staff gathers around the new instrument. “First, we must prepare the sample to ensure it is representative of the batch and properly homogenized. For solids, it’s often ground into a powder to ensure uniformity. Next, we place the sample in the solids measurement cell. This cell is designed to hold your sample securely and expose it uniformly to the NIR light. Now we configure the instrument that I have calibrated for all the types of analysis you may perform. On the interface, we select the parameters we want to analyse, such as protein, glucose, or fat. Once we start the analysis, the instrument shines near-infrared light through the sample. As I said when I met you all, different molecular bonds in the sample absorb this light at different wavelengths, and the Fourier Transform converts the data into a spectrum. Using the software, we analyze these spectra. It compares them against a database of known spectra to quantify the concentration of each component in your sample. And, voila, now we have our result,” says Nancy. “Already? We used to have to wait days for our results,” says the owner. “The beauty of NIR spectroscopy lies in its speed and non-destructiveness. You get your results in seconds without altering or destroying your sample,” says Nancy.

The beauty of NIR spectroscopy lies in its speed and non-destructiveness. You get your results in seconds without altering or destroying your sample

The client is so happy, not only with Nancy’s advice but also for invigorating his team. “Lastly, always remember to validate the results periodically with reference methods as this ensures your FT-NIR stays accurate over time,” says Nance before departing. The team all thank Nancy for her help and wisdom, and something gives Nancy the impression that they’ll think twice before underestimating a young woman.

This blog was a prelude to a larger narrative we’re exploring – the vital role of Women in science. Stay tuned for our blog on February 11th, where we delve deeper into this topic and celebrate the unsung heroines of the scientific world for “Women and Girls in Science Day”.