PURE Bioscience, Inc. announced July 14 that it has submitted a Food Contact Notification (FCN) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for silver dihydrogen citrate (SDC) as an online reprocessing (OLR) antimicrobial for raw poultry processing. SDC is non-toxic, easy to handle and dilute, non-corrosive to processing equipment, and does not create noxious fumes, according to PURE. Data submitted as part of the Company’s FCN showed that SDC achieved an average reduction in Salmonella of 2.75 log10 CFU/cm2 when applied as an OLR spray and 6.28 log10 CFU/cm2 when combined with an immersion chilling process simulating current U.S. industry practices. Additionally, a sensory evaluation of SDC showed no difference in color, appearance or odor in treated poultry.

Upon the FDA’s granting of the FCN, PURE will immediately submit the FCN to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) for a new technology review. Subject to receipt of both FDA and USDA approval, PURE will begin commercializing SDC in Q1 of 2015 for use in poultry processing.