Post by M. Hawbaker on Aug 22, 2023 18:53:44 GMT
The next time you dig into a bowl of pasta with freshly grated parmesan, you could accidentally be eating a microchip.
That's because makers of Parmigiano-Reggiano are implanting microchips into the casings of their 90-pound cheese wheels as the latest move to ward off counterfeiters, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Yes, there are counterfeiters of Parmigiano-Reggiano. That's because it's the original parmesan cheese officially protected by the European Union, meaning the name can only be used for the authentic product. Parmigiano-Reggiano must be made in a particular area of northern Italy's Emilia Romagna region and with specific production standards and techniques. It also has to be aged for at least one year.
The Journal reported that the micro-transponders are made of silicon and about the size of a grain of sand. They are being placed on the casein label, a food-safe label commonly used in cheese production, which is placed on the cheese wheel. The microchip can then be scanned to pull up a unique serial ID that buyers can use to ensure they've got the real thing.
The chips use blockchain technology and trace the wheel of cheese back to where the milk that was used came from. Other industries are also considering or planning to use the chips, including makers of drugs and car parts.
www.msn.com/en-us/foodanddrink/foodnews/parmigiano-reggiano-makers-are-putting-edible-microchips-the-size-of-a-grain-of-sand-into-their-90-pound-cheese-wheels-to-combat-counterfeiters/ar-AA1fpV34?fbclid=IwAR3cba8BSypKLIaP9Tk_SQTWe4_23aLp5MBTR9viT6QmVVPzz2IfgXjT0d0
That's because makers of Parmigiano-Reggiano are implanting microchips into the casings of their 90-pound cheese wheels as the latest move to ward off counterfeiters, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Yes, there are counterfeiters of Parmigiano-Reggiano. That's because it's the original parmesan cheese officially protected by the European Union, meaning the name can only be used for the authentic product. Parmigiano-Reggiano must be made in a particular area of northern Italy's Emilia Romagna region and with specific production standards and techniques. It also has to be aged for at least one year.
The Journal reported that the micro-transponders are made of silicon and about the size of a grain of sand. They are being placed on the casein label, a food-safe label commonly used in cheese production, which is placed on the cheese wheel. The microchip can then be scanned to pull up a unique serial ID that buyers can use to ensure they've got the real thing.
The chips use blockchain technology and trace the wheel of cheese back to where the milk that was used came from. Other industries are also considering or planning to use the chips, including makers of drugs and car parts.
www.msn.com/en-us/foodanddrink/foodnews/parmigiano-reggiano-makers-are-putting-edible-microchips-the-size-of-a-grain-of-sand-into-their-90-pound-cheese-wheels-to-combat-counterfeiters/ar-AA1fpV34?fbclid=IwAR3cba8BSypKLIaP9Tk_SQTWe4_23aLp5MBTR9viT6QmVVPzz2IfgXjT0d0
Oh, we really don't know what we're eating, in this day & age. That's how I feel about this, and it makes me chuckle. It's a little unnerving, isn't it? And I want to know if those edible chips are digestible, or am I going to excrete them, whole & in their identifiable state? If I'm going to eat them, I want to know that they are not going to disturb my gut biome. 
The trick is to try the knock-offs and try the genuine item - and draw your own conclusion as to which is best, or at least as good as. There are things, I'm sure that I want an original of, period. But many other things, I simply make a quick evaluation with my 6 sense to see what pleases them, and I pick and go. 
