From the field to the processing plant, agricultural product intended for widespread food consumption must meet numerous international quality standards.

For years, near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy has provided a proven and versatile analytical method for agricultural, ecological, and forestry applications. Within the NIR field, ASD instrumentation has proven itself superior for rapid and accurate in-field identification and analysis of many constituents, including lutein, cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin, protein, moisture, ash, glucan, xylan, carbohydrates, and chlorophyll values. Both farmers and industry stand to realize better returns on their investment with analysis of crops prior to harvest—better determination and classification of crop quality allow farmers to achieve higher profits, and industrial buyers can lower the risk of purchasing out-of-spec product.

• Rapid measurements save time
• Non-destructive
• Can be used in the field or in the lab
• Ability to measure multiple constituents simultaneously
• Cost effective

ASD’s NIR measurement solutions are ideal for the qualitative and quantitative agricultural analysis necessary throughout the entire production process, including process monitoring of fermentable sugars and enzymatic activities for increased product yield. The ability to analyze large numbers of samples simultaneously in real-time, continuously, and non-destructively, provides significant advantages in the manufacturing stage. The flexibility of ASD systems allows this at virtually any point in the processing stream where determining constituent or final product quality is critical to the success of your operation.

ASD technology effectively measures both living plant tissue and dried plant materials. The research-grade data is also effectively used to model more complex attributes, such as herbivore feeding rates, soil nutrient requirements, and prediction of crop yield. ASD’s measurement solutions have been used successfully in a variety of vegetation analysis, including:

• Quantification of corn, canola, and soy bean seeds (measurements of protein, moisture, fats, amino acids, and other constituents)
• Development of lignin, cellulose, and nitrogen calibrations using spectra of whole fresh and dried ground leaves
• Differentiation of various wood species
• Analysis of soil nutrient status for agricultural applications