VOV.VN- Using a food safety tester if it is not properly calibrated and maintained will give misleading results.
Dirty food is rampant on the market, making many consumers interested in a machine originating from the Russian Federation that can measure chemical residues on food. However, this machine is controversial because its accuracy and efficiency are still inadequate.
Equipment for measuring safety in food originated from the Russian Federation, with 2 types: Soeks Nuc-019-1 and Ecotester. This device is as compact as a mobile phone, can measure and give nitrate residues in vegetables, tubers, fruits, fresh meat and warn of exceeding or not exceeding the allowable threshold. Nitrates are the leading human carcinogen.
Nitrates are known to be the residual amount left when using too much chemical fertilizers or chemical preservatives to ripen or keep fresh fruits and foods. In addition, the state of using match salt to turn rancid and rotten meat into fresh and delicious also makes the concentration of nitrate in food higher.
To use the machine, users just need to insert the needle tip of the machine into the food and press the machine. Within 20 seconds, the nitrate concentration indicator will be displayed, the machine will compare with the specified nitrate level and make appropriate recommendations for consumers.
Both machines are installed with Vietnamese versions for user convenience, including standard nitrate content index data of more than 60 foods as permitted by WHO. Currently, these machines are brought to Vietnam market by two ways, portable and directly imported. The Soeks machine costs from 3.5 to 4.5 million VND, the Ecotester machine costs 6.5 million VND to measure both nitrate and radioactive concentrations.
Mr. Le Van Toan, from Hoan Kiem district, Hanoi said: "This machine is too expensive to return to Vietnam, but its only function is to check for nitrates, but in fact there are many substances in food. so its function has not really met the user. I brought to the market to try food with this machine, used a needle to try it, but people did not let me. Many times when I buy it, I try to plug it in and see that the index is too high and I don't dare to use it anymore. There are also people who test it and find that most of the toxins in the food are too high."
According to some clean food stores, the SOEKS food safety meter only measures about 60 common foods, while the types of food on the market are countless. Many customers are flexible by using the scale of one to measure the other, but the results will not be accurate because these are two different vegetables. Even, the same vegetable harvested on the same day, the gardener took the sample to the laboratory for standard analysis, but the customer's meter reported an excess, leading to a dispute between the customer and the store. Therefore, customers should not be so dependent on this type of machine that they mistakenly think they can find clean food.
Mr. Cao Xuan Thanh, owner of a clean vegetable shop in Kim Nguu street, Hai Ba Trung district, Hanoi said: Before this machine appeared and was imported to Vietnam, a few years ago an ozone generator also helped. reduce pesticides from fruits and vegetables.
For this Russian machine, the inspection of vegetables and fruits produced by Viet Gap's clean technology sometimes gives incorrect results. This does not necessarily create peace of mind for consumers. Therefore, it is up to the sense of responsibility of growers and breeders to ensure the supply of clean products to consumers.
According to experts, the Soeks food safety meter has an error level of about 5%, which is acceptable. However, inductive devices only give initial predictions and are not reliable enough for absolute evaluation. This machine is a meter for nitrate residue in food, not a food safety meter, so consumers should not misunderstand its function.
Mr. Nguyen Duy Lam, Director of the Center for Research and Quality Control of Agro-Food Products (Institute of Agricultural Electromechanics and Post-Harvest Technology) said: These machines, sellers often abuse words, are machine to determine food safety criteria.
In fact, food safety has many indicators, not only nitrate, but it is pesticide residues of all kinds, this machine cannot determine. The first is that overshooting is possible. But in the case of excess, whether it is true or not, it may be true, but it may also be due to a non-standard machine. Second, the user does not know how to use it properly. If the threshold is exceeded but the level is moderate, it is not a cause for concern because nitrate is not too toxic. When it comes to processing, leaving it unused for a few days or washing or cooking, it has also decreased a lot.
Experts recommend that even if the nitrate content is at a safe level, it does not guarantee that the food is safe, because there are many other harmful chemicals such as heavy metals, residues of plant protection chemicals, Growth and microbiology also affect food safety. In particular, pesticides have thousands of different types and cannot be tested with a rapid test machine, but must be sent to a laboratory for analysis.
The quick test devices themselves, if not properly calibrated and maintained, will give misleading results. Besides, the nitrate content in food is very low, it's just a residue, so accurate testing requires specialized equipment.
Bao Ngoc/VOV-Center News
