3M Food Safety’s Petrifilm™ Rapid Yeast and Mold Count Plate has been validated by AOAC INTERNATIONAL as a First Action Official Method of Analysis for the detection of yeasts and molds within food products in as little as 48 hours.

3M introduced the plate in September 2013 as a faster and superior indicator test alternative to conventional agar methods. The test is capable of incubating yeast and mold for easier quantification and interpretation in just 48 hours versus 5 to 7 days, as with other methods. It also mitigates the erratic spreading of molds to facilitate clearer and more accurate colony counting.

“Yeast and mold testing has been a labor intensive, time consuming challenge for food producers for years, as they’ve often been forced to hold their finished goods until this final aspect of release testing is completed,” says Jason Semerad, global marketing manager, 3M Food Safety. “This latest validation demonstrates 3M’s continued commitment to providing fast, reliable, and accurate indicator tests that meet the most stringent industry requirements and gives our global customers additional confidence in using our new technology to support.