Microbiological Testing & Analysis

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The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA’s FSIS) has notified constituents that establishments wishing to adopt the cloth sampling method (i.e., manual sampling device or continuous sampling device) for Shiga Toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) testing of raw beef products no longer require a “No Objection Letter” (NOL) from FSIS.

PathogenDx has expanded the reach of its patented multiplexed molecular testing technology—Dynamic Dimensional Detection (“D3 Array™”)—beyond the cannabis and hemp sectors, to the agriculture and food sectors.

In this episode of Food Safety Matters, we talk with Martin Wiedmann, Ph.D., D.V.M., the Gellert Family Professor in Food Safety and Food Science at Cornell University, about his research on Listeria and Salmonella, his work to strengthen foodborne illness surveillance and response, his use of whole genome sequencing (WGS), and other topics.

Using whole genome sequencing (WGS), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention were able to link a persistent, drug-resistant strain of Escherichia coli O157:H7 to multiple sources for various foodborne illness outbreaks.

A Purdue University research team has developed a new time-saving assay to detect Escherichia coli O157:H7 in ground beef.

Researchers have introduced a novel, thermal biosensor for real-time detection of Escherichia coli, demonstrating its ability to detect the pathogen in milk without sample preparation. The sensor would be easy to mass produce, and shows potential as a low-cost, rapid tool for onsite microbial indication.

ImagoAI Inc. has launched a new, affordable rapid mycotoxin test that provides results in 30 seconds for corn silage and corn mycotoxins.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CIFA) recently provided insight into how whole genome sequencing (WGS) and international data-sharing helped trace a 2020 multinational food safety outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes to enoki mushrooms, enabling countries to rapidly recall the affected products. 

A pervasive trend exists to take larger and more frequent samples to address microbial contamination. This trend has touched almonds and is expected to hit other nut products, which can be considered for aggregated sampling as a solution.

Two reports by the National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods (NACMCF) have advised the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA’s FSIS) on microbial testing of ready-to-eat (RTE) foods and the safety of recycled water in food production, respectively.