AI system identifies pork belly with too much fat ahead of Pork Belly Day on March 3

AI pork belly sorter introduced at LOTTE Mart\'s Fresh Quality Innovation Center. Courtesy of Lotte Mart

Pork belly sorting machines using artificial intelligence (AI) technology have appeared at the inspection sites of large supermarkets ahead of Pork Belly Day on March 3. The move was made to eradicate “overfat pork belly” after a series of complaints from consumers as some retailers sold pork belly with too much fat.

Lotte Mart announced on February 25 that it introduced an AI screening system to check the quality of pork belly at its Fresh Quality Innovation Center in Jeungpyeong, North Chungcheong Province. The AI equipment based on deep learning (a technology in which computers learn by combining and analyzing external data on their own) analyzes a cross section of pork belly to check the proportion of lean meat and fat and sorts out pork belly with too much fat. Lotte Mart explained that it is possible to make more precise and objective selections than humans can do.

The reason why retailers mobilized the AI system was to calm consumer distrust. On the occasion of Pork Belly Day in March last year, online and offline retailers held large-scale discounts on pork belly, but consumers complained that they received a lump of overfat pork belly.

The controversy continued even after the government distributed the “Pork Belly Quality Control Manual” to the industry in October last year. The manual recommends removing fat from small-packaged pork belly to less than 1 centimeter and pork belly to less than 1.5 centimeters and discarding excess fat parts.

In response, Lotte Mart inspects all pork belly products sold in its stores, including direct products, branded products from suppliers, and foreign products, at the Fresh Quality Innovation Center. At the warehousing stage, only products that have undergone a process, which involves cutting off a large portion of the back fat, are handled, and the maximum allowable weight of the product is lowered by 10 percent to reduce the possibility of products with much fat being sold at the stores.

At the commercialization stage, drastic fat removal is the key. For example, the entire rib area between the 10th and 14th thoracic vertebrae, where excess fat is formed, is cut out. An official from Lotte Mart said "Previously, we used to cut the area diagonally, leaving a lean part, but we have greatly strengthened the work standards to remove the entire fatty area by cutting it in a straight line.”

In addition, pork belly is spread out and packaged in a container that is 15 percent larger than before, making it easier for consumers to check the meat quality. Folding or rolling the pork belly on both sides is prohibited.

Pork Belly Day was first organized by livestock cooperatives in the early 2000s to promote the consumption of domestic pork as the pork industry was facing difficulties due to the expansion of pork imports and foot-and-mouth disease. This year, the Handon Fund Management Committee will hold discount events before and after Pork Belly Day at Handon Mall, its official shopping mall, as well as Nonghyup, three major large discount stores, convenience stores, and Super Supermarkets (SSM).

The convenience store industry, which has been marketing the date of March 3 as "Triangle Kimbap Day,” will also focus on Pork Belly Day this year. This is a change considering that convenience stores have emerged as local grocery shopping places. CU will offer discounts on meat products and give away assorted vegetable wraps and pickled radish from March 1 to 3. GS25 is holding a "Celebrating Day of March 3 in Advance" event, selling pork belly, pork shoulder, and side vegetables at low prices.

※This article has undergone review by a professional translator after being translated by an AI translation tool.