SEEBug – Develoment of a sensor for the fast and efficient detection of pathogenic bacteria in Bivalves

Coordinator

Catarina Marques

Programme

Mar 2020 - Programa Operacional Mar 2020

Dates

08/07/2020 - 30/06/2023

Funding for CESAM

487344.61 €

Total Funding

487344.61 €

Participating Institutions

  • IEETA - Instituto de Engenharia Eletrónica e Telemática de Aveiro

The production of shellfish in Portugal has been increasing substantially, leading the ranking of mollusc marketing in some areas of national production, so its economic impact on the domestic and export market is increasingly relevant. However, the bivalves production sites are frequently affected by fecal contamination, what promotes the accumulation of pathogenic bacteria in these filtering organisms. The need to apply control systems that guarantee food safety and prevent negative impacts on consumers’ health is extremely important. Hence, the aim of this research project is to develop and apply broad spectrum and specific SEEBug sensors, capable of detecting early contamination of bivalves by pathogenic bacteria. In addition, the SEEBug mobile phone application will be developed based on artificial intelligence algorithms, in order to generate low-cost technology, userfriendly and environmentally sustainable, which can be used by operators of the bivalve fishing industry, from Fishermen to final sellers

CESAM members in the project