X-ray detection systems discriminate between bone and meat based on the density of the material, so a piece of bone which is denser than the meat becomes visible on the screen. The system is not infallible, though, points out Doug Britton, program manager of the Agricultural Technology Research Program at Georgia Tech University in Atlanta.
“Bones in chicken have similar densities of the meat tissue,” he explains. “Unfortinately, with some of the bones – in particular fan bones – the discrimination is very difficult because the density of the bone and tissue are very similar.”