Metabolomics: a second-generation platform for crop and food analysis

The combined factors of financial and food security, a rapidly increasing population and the associated requirement for food generated sustainably in a changing environment have brought food swiftly to the top of most government agendas. The consequence of this is that we need to produce more food at an equivalent or higher quality with lower inputs. These aims are achievable using conventional breeding, but not in the required timelines, and thus state-of-the-art genetic and analytical technologies are coming to the forefront. The concept of metabolomics, underpinned by mainstream (GC-MS, LC-MS, NMR) and specialist (MALDI-TOF-MS) analytical technologies addressing broad chemical (class) targets and dynamic ranges, offers significant potential to add significant value to crop and food science and deliver on future food demands. Metabolomics has now found a home in the food analytical toolbox with raw material quality and safety the major quality areas, although, as we will show, it is translating beyond this into food storage, shelf-life and post-harvest processing.