Scientists in Aberdeen have developed a tool which they say will help tackle so-called food fraud and the addition of "rogue ingredients" to meals.
The system developed at the University of Aberdeen's Rowett Institute can identify the type of meat in shop-bought meals, and the breed of animal it comes from.
They say MEATiCode will help to determine the authenticity of the product and prevent cross contamination.
Food fraud - purposely altering, misrepresenting or mislabeling a product - is estimated to cost the UK about £2bn a year.
Those behind the technology, which is able to identify multiple meat species in one product, said it was the first of its kind and will help to protect consumers and improve food satefy.
