Confirmation of the correct labelling of foods demands new methods to demonstrate the identity and origin of its components and its life-history. Species identification can be performed by DNA, protein or lipid analyses, but there are no methods yet suita ble for identification of the geographical origin or life-history of the product. Our on-going research shows that lipids are good candidates for origin identification in fatty fish, but no method is available for lean species. We propose a novel approach, that we will test in a selection of marine species first: to use nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy for osmolyte-profiling of marine organisms to identify the species, origin and - combined with protein-profiling by 2-D p rotein electrophoresis – to examine, in addition, its life-history. Targeted users are i) consumer organisations, ii) official control authorities and laboratories and iii) industries: all who wish to authenticate marine products, whether available at ret ail shops, imported, for export, or purchased by processing industries for further processing. This project complements our on-going activities in this field, and it is organised to include collaboration with European experts in seafood authentication who se expertise is complementary to the one proposed here