Scientists Develop Technology to Measure Fat in Food

Researchers at Harvard University in the US have applied magnetic levitation (MagLev) technology to measure the fat content of milk, cheese, vegetable oil and peanut butter.

The researchers also used the technology to estimate the salinity of water and monitor the removal of husk or drying of grains.

The technology includes a sensor that consists of a container filled with a solution of paramagnetic ions that has two magnets at each end.

Samples of different materials are placed inside the container and the distance they migrate through the fluid provides a measure of their density.

The report, published in the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry, said the technology can be used by food processing companies to take density measurements.