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How much gluten, GMOs and allergens are in that cereal you thinking abut eating this morning? Not many people know what is in their food right now, but genomic data startup Clear Labs hopes to index all the packaged fare in the world so we do.
The startup uses technology related to human genome sequencing but applies it to food products. And it’s working with some of the world’s largest food brands to test for ingredient accuracy, origin, GMOs, bacterial contamination and allergens – as well as nutritional data and off-label additives.
“Our aim is really to build this comprehensive database upon which we can make food indexable, searchable and with all the types of genetic analytics you can run on top of that,” Ghorashi told TechCrunch over the phone.
Though Clear Labs is mostly for testing at large food brands right now, it could have consumer applications. More than 93 percent of the American population believes the government should add labels to food that has been genetically engineered. More than half (57 percent) say they would not want to buy GM food.
“It’s all about changing the paradigm from food safety to food quality,” Amini said.
Currently, the Non-GMO Project verifies food that does not contain GMOs. There are other resources that monitor food contamination such as FoodSafety.gov. However, Clear Labs seeks to index all pre-made food products in a comprehensive genomic database.
The co-founders foresee a consumer application in around five to 7 years. In the future you could take out your smartphone, scan the label of a food item at your grocery store or restaurant and be able to see the molecular data and any concerns associated with it before eating.
Read full, original post: Clear Labs Aims To Be Google Search For GMOs In Packaged Food
