Hyperspectral Imaging as a Visual Quality Assessment Method for South African Herbal Teas

Rooibos (Aspalathus linearis) and Honeybush (Cyclopia species) are teas indigenous to South Africa that are popularly consumed locally as well as internationally for its purported health benefits. Studies have confirmed anti-oxidant, antimutagenic and anticancer activity mainly due to the presence of polyphenols. Hyperspectral imaging (HSI) integrates conventional spectroscopy and imaging to obtain spectral and spatial information from a sample. The potential of short wave infrared (SWIR) hyperspectral imaging in combination with chemometric data analysis as a rapid quality control method for commercially important herbal teas was investigated. Images were acquired with the sisuChema short wave infrared (SWIR) hyperspectral pushbroom imaging system at a spectral range of 920 – 2514nm. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was performed to remove background pixels and to visualize the data. Classes (i.e. Rooibos or Honeybush) were interactively assigned using the score images and plots. Partial Least Squares Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA) classification models developed were subsequently used to accurately predict the species identity of commercially available herbal tea samples introduced as an external dataset, producing a visually interpretable result. The results showed that the labeling information is correct but that Honeybush tea is in most cases present in very low amounts. It is evident that hyperspectral imaging is an objective and non-destructive quality control method that can be successfully used to determine the botanical species included in herbal teas in addition to giving an indication of the abundance of each species in polyherbal tea mixtures.