Invisible Sentinel Inc. announced Monday that its rapid diagnostic for the detection of Listeria species has received Performance Tested Methods certification from the Association of Analytical Communities (AOAC).

The company’s Veriflow® Listeria species assay (Veriflow LS), has been approved to detect bacterial contamination by Listeria species in various food types, including ready-to-eat foods, deli meat, and dairy products, and on various surfaces with which food is in contact during preparation and packaging. Listeria species testing accounts for more than 40% of all food pathogen testing in the U.S., according to the company.

Nick Siciliano, Invisible Sentinel's co-founder and chief executive officer, commented: “This approval not only broadens our Veriflow portfolio but also enables a far larger segment of the food and beverage industry to benefit from the advantages of our technology.”

Ben Pascal, co-founder and chief business officer of Invisible Sentinel, added: “Veriflow LS has been highly rated by our clients during the field testing of this assay, which we have conducted over the past year. Veriflow LS features accessibility and simplicity not typically associated with other molecular technologies.”

With the certification of Veriflow LS, Invisible Sentinel has achieved AOAC approvals for three assays designed to protect against illness due to contaminated food. The Veriflow Campylobacter assay (Veriflow CA) and Veriflow Listeria monocytogenes assay (Veriflow LM) received approvals last year.

The company anticipates AOAC approval of a fourth product, the Veriflow® Salmonella species assay (Veriflow SS), in the coming weeks.