Characteristics of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) vaccine-induced abscesses in pork meat and verification of detectability using hyperspectral imaging technique

Authors: KIM, JUNTAE - Chungnam National University; FAQEERZADA, MOHAMMAD - Chungnam National University; Kim, Moon; Baek, Insuck; CHO, BYOUNG-KWAN - Chungnam National University

Submitted to: Food Control
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/29/2025
Publication Date: 4/1/2025
Citation: Kim, J., Faqeerzada, M., Kim, M.S., Baek, I., Cho, B. 2025. Characteristics of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) vaccine-induced abscesses in pork meat and verification of detectability using hyperspectral imaging technique. Food Control. 175: 111330. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodcont.2025.111330.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodcont.2025.111330

Interpretive Summary: Foot-and-mouth disease is a highly contagious viral livestock disease, and if not treated, can lead to substantial economic and industrial losses upon its outbreak. Many countries have mandated vaccination for foot-and-mouth disease, but vaccination has led to issues, including the development of abscesses as a side effect. Currently, no technology exists for detecting these abscesses. In this study, various hyperspectral imaging technologies such as fluorescence and reflectance imaging in the visible/near-infrared to short-wave infrared regions were evaluated to detect abscesses in meat samples. The spectral imaging models resulted in a high classification accuracy where fluorescence, visible/near-infrared, and short-wave infrared methods achieved 96.2%, 97.0%, and 98.9% accuracy in classifying the abscesses, respectively. This research demonstrated the potential for using spectral imaging methods to rapidly identify meat abscesses where meat processing facilities can implement the technology to ensure safe and high-quality meat products.

Technical Abstract: Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a highly contagious, viral livestock disease classified as a Category 1 notifiable disease, causing substantial economic and industrial losses upon its outbreak. As a result, South Korea mandated FMD vaccination for pigs starting in 2011. However, vaccination has led to issues, including the development of abscesses as a side effect. Currently, no technology exists for detecting these abscesses, necessitating manual inspections by workers in meat processing plants. This study explores the potential of various hyperspectral imaging systems in the Vis/NIR, fluorescence, and short-wave infrared (SWIR) ranges for detecting abscesses in meat. Classification models were developed, and physicochemical analyses, including proximate composition, H&E staining, and microbial assessments, were conducted to characterize abscesses. A total of 300 spectra were acquired for abscesses, muscle, and fat, utilizing 900 spectra for building classification models for each camera system (Vis/NIR, fluorescence, and SWIR). Partial least squares discriminant analysis was employed to construct the abscess classification model. In terms of overall classification accuracy, Vis/NIR achieved 97.0%, fluorescence achieved 96.2%, and SWIR achieved 98.9% accuracy in classifying abscesses. This research highlights SWIR imaging in the 1000-2500 nm range as the most accurate method for classifying abscesses and demonstrates its potential in pork lesion classification using the same wavelength range. Based on this foundational research, it is believed that practical, field-deployable classification equipment can be developed in the future.