Determining the geographical origin of lettuce with data mining applied to micronutrients and soil properties

Author(s)

Maione, Camila ; Araujo, Eloa Moura ; dos Santos-Araujo, Sabrina Novaes ; Friol Boim, Alexys Giorgia ; Barbosa, Rommel Melgaco ; Ferracciu Alleoni, Luis Reynaldo

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: CIENTIA AGRICOL; v. 79, n. 1, p. 15-pg., 2022-01-01.

Abstract

Lettuce (Lactuca sativa) is the main leafy vegetable produced in Brazil. Since its production is widespread all over the country, lettuce traceability and quality assurance is hampered. In this study, we propose a new method to identify the geographical origin of Brazilian lettuce. The method uses a powerful data mining technique called support vector machines (SVM) applied to elemental composition and soil properties of samples analyzed. We investigated lettuce produced in Sao Paulo and Pernambuco, two states in the southeastern and northeastern regions in Brazil, respectively. We investigated efficiency of the SVM model by comparing its results with those achieved by traditional linear discriminant analysis (LDA). The SVM models outperformed the LDA models in the two scenarios investigated, achieving an average of 98 % prediction accuracy to discriminate lettuce from both states. A feature evaluation formula, called F-score, was used to measure the discriminative power of the variables analyzed. The soil exchangeable cation capacity, soil contents of low crystalized Al and Zn content in lettuce samples were the most relevant components for differentiation. Our results reinforce the potential of data mining and machine learning techniques to support traceability strategies and authentication of leafy vegetables. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 12/03682-2 - Soil-plant transfer of heavy metals and assessment of risk to human health in crops in the state of São Paulo
• Grantee: Sabrina Novaes dos Santos-Araujo
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• FAPESP's process: 15/19332-9 - Oral and respiratory bioacessibility of potentially toxic elements in urban soils and sediments
• Grantee: Alexys Giorgia Friol Boim
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• FAPESP's process: 15/25416-0 - Bioconcentration and kinetic of desorption of potentially toxic elements in soils cultivated with vegetables in organic and conventional systems
• Grantee: Eloá Moura Araújo
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate