The quality of food has a crucial relationship with human health， so the rapid and accurate detection of food quality has always attracted much attention. Olfactory visualization technology is a new type of food testing technology， which not only has the advantages of being fast， sensitive， and not easily affected by the environment， but also can intuitively judge the quality of food through color changes. However， due to the influence of complex surrounding factors， olfactory visualization technology cannot be used as a standard food quality testing method. In this paper， we review the basic principles and components of olfactory visualization techniques and their applications in the detection of meat， spices， beverages， grains and other foodstuffs at home and abroad. The impact of the technology on them is analyzed in depth from a multidimensional perspective， the main problems faced are summarized， and the future development trend is foreseen. It provides theoretical references for expanding its application scope and realizing the functionalization， intelligence and informatization of food safety and quality testing.