Bio-Rad Joins IBM and Mars in Food Safety Consortium
Earlier this month, Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. announced its involvement with the Consortium for Sequencing the Food Supply Chain--initially established last year by IBM Research and Mars, Inc. The consortium is combining advanced genomics with new informatics tools to observe microbial communities in food and detect hazards in the food supply chain that can threaten safety.
By joining IBM and Mars, Bio-Rad will offer expertise in chromogenic and molecular tests for food pathogens and food quality indicators to the consortium. Scientists in the consortium are investigating the genetic fingerprints of living organisms such as bacteria, fungi, or viruses and to gain a better understanding of how they grow in different environments and in raw materials. The data will help detect hazards that signal safety concerns earlier in the food supply chain to diminish the risk of contamination.