Abstract
Adulteration of meat products, including illegal substitution and addition of ingredients, tampering, and the misrepresentation and labelling of food or food ingredients, is becoming a more serious problem globally. The consequences of such manipulations can pose various health risks for consumers, including food allergies and poisoning. This study investigates the problem of meat product adulteration, and detection of the same using real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Review question: What is the diagnostic accuracy of real-time PCR testing for the detection of meat adulteration? A review via meta-analysis was conducted. Searches were conducted in the Web of Science and MEDLINE (February 2021). All data processing was carried out using Review Manager 5.4 and Meta-Disc 1.4 software.