Researchers have evaluated a handheld DNA sequencing device for use in environmental monitoring at food factories.
The study, by researchers from the Teagasc food research program and APC Microbiome Ireland’s Science Foundation Ireland Research Centre, tested portable DNA sequencers as a routine microbial monitoring tool in food production facilities. It
Continue Reading Scientists test handheld DNA sequencers for microbial monitoring
Mars Inc. and IBM Research have teamed up for an ambitious food safety whole-genome sequencing project. The Consortium for Sequencing the Food Supply Chain will study the the microbial ecology of foods and their processing environments. Having a much deeper understanding of the populations in these ecologies — bacteria, fungi,
Continue Reading Industry Consortium Begins Enormous DNA Sequencing Project for Food Safety
After months of uncertainty over the future of the program, the Agricultural Marketing Service’s Microbiological Data Program, which tests produce for disease-causing pathogens like E. coli O157:H7, Salmonella, and Listeria, has officially gone into shutdown mode, a U.S. Department of Agriculture official confirmed Tuesday.
Department officials told states that participate
Continue Reading Cutting 80 Percent of Pathogen Testing for Produce, USDA Begins Shutdown of MDP
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition just published the second edition of the Bad Bug Book, which now includes a separate “consumer box” for each chapter to provide more non-technical explanations.
The book provides current information about the major known agents that cause
Continue Reading FDA Releases Second Edition of the ‘Bad Bug Book’
In an effort to communicate a more complete understanding of E. coli bacteria, the American Academy of Microbiology (AAM) released a colloquium report titled “E. coli: Good, Bad & Deadly” on Tuesday. Focusing on the fact that deadly, Shiga toxin-producing strains account for a small minority of E.
In the wake of May’s European E. coli outbreak, microbiologists worldwide have sped up efforts to prevent a similar disaster from happening again. Among them, a team of collaborators from universities in the U.S. and Canada may be on the trail of a tiny protein that could render E. coli
Continue Reading Combating E. Coli: Can a Peptide Block the Bug?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Thursday that it is investigating a multistate outbreak of Salmonella Typhimurium infections. A preliminary analysis indicates the outbreak may be the result of exposure in clinical and teaching microbiology laboratories.
As of April 20, the CDC said 73 individuals infected with the
On Wednesday the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service announced that the agency is now accepting nominations for new members for the National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods.
FSIS is seeking nominations for two-year terms from individuals with a variety of different backgrounds, but
Continue Reading USDA Requests Nominations for Microbiological Committee
Is our food really safe? The plethora of contamination events over the past few years certainly begs the question. The first major contamination event occurred in 1998 when Sara Lee recalled 35 million pounds of various meat products. Recalls were pretty quiet for about 8 years and then:
• In 2006
