Military technology could soon enable civilians to spot when food has been tampered with, researchers in Tianjin said on Wednesday.

Spectral imaging technology, in an experiment, displayed fake green leaves in blue on the screen and normal ones in white.

The developer of the technology - Tianjin Jinhang Research Institute of Technical Physics which is affiliated to China Aerospace Science & Industry Corp - says potential applications of the technology include inspecting illegally colored oranges and inquiring about the expiry date of milk powder, jobs which are currently done by professional agencies with sophisticated methods.