Engr. Prof. Ernest Teye, has been selected by International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to serve as Chief Scientific Investigator in a Coordinated Research Project (CRP): Rapid Screening for Safe Food aimed at strengthening food safety systems through rapid screening technologies.

The project seeks to develop, adapt, test and validate transferable, reliable, rapid, cost-effective and field-deployable analytical techniques to support food control programmes in low- and middle-income countries. These techniques will combine nuclear-based and complementary analytical methods to enable high-throughput screening of food products along the entire farm-to-fork food supply chain.

According to the project objectives, the methodology will empower food safety laboratories to rapidly detect and assess food safety challenges, thereby protecting consumer health while facilitating local and international trade. The project is also designed to generate fit-for-purpose scientific data to support fast and informed decision-making during emergencies, including foodborne disease outbreaks, pandemics, natural disasters, and periods when conventional food control systems are disrupted.

Under the leadership of Prof. Teye, the CRP will test these field-deployable methods in real-world conditions, particularly in developing countries, to assess their robustness, reliability, simplicity and usability, even by non-scientific operators. The project will also develop chemometric approaches for data analysis and interpretation, alongside strict quality control and quality assurance procedures to ensure data validity and reliability. The research will prioritize major chemical food safety hazards in line with international regulations and pressing public health concerns.

The project is expected to significantly enhance national and regional capacity for food safety surveillance, protect public health, and support.