Increased Testing for Pathogens and More Complex Tests Means More Outsourcing

By Maria Fontanazza

Companies are under more pressure to analyze food samples for pathogens, but not all of them have the expertise to handle the complexity involved in laboratory analysis. In addition, companies don’t want to risk contamination throughout their facility. As a result, many are outsourcing these services to contract labs.

Changing Landscape for Selecting a Food Safety Contract Laboratory

Strategic Consulting, Inc. recently conducted a study of food processors and the trends in outsourcing their laboratory testing work to food contract laboratories. The firm spoke with 100 food processors nationwide in 15 food processing categories, including protein, dairy, vegetables and packaged foods, inquiring about the types of samples they collect, how many are collected on a daily and monthly basis, their target analytes, and where they have the analysis performed (an in-plant lab, central company lab or an outsourced food contract laboratory); the firm also spoke with folks at leading food companies and a number of large food contract labs.

Bob Ferguson, managing director at Strategic Consulting, shared his insights with Food Safety Tech about the survey, the details of which will be presented at the Food Safety Consortium in December.

Food Safety Tech: What were some of the major findings?

Bob Ferguson: Food processors continue to outsource more and more of their lab analysis. This is a trend that we outlined in our Food-8 market report in 2014, and it is clearly continuing and growing. The impact is particularly acute in microbiology testing, especially when analysis is for pathogens. Of the companies we surveyed, 87% did some amount of routine microbiology testing and 67% of those analyzed the samples at an in-house lab. But when asked about pathogens, 77% of the companies analyze samples for pathogens but only 34% analyze the samples at an in-house lab. Clearly there is a higher level of concern in handling pathogens at in-house labs.

Food Safety Tech: What are the processors’ concerns regarding pathogens?

Ferguson: I would say that their concerns fall into two major categories: Technical and operational. From a technical perspective, there is always a risk when working with pathogens in a food processing facility. Microbiologists understand how easily bacteria can travel through a facility—being carried on employees, their clothing, or equipment, through air currents, or even through penetration connections such as drains. And most diagnostic tests not only require handling pathogen samples but also enriching the samples prior to analysis. The presence of food samples with high concentrations of pathogens can present a risk for the spread of contamination into production areas.

From an operational standpoint, running a food analysis lab is becoming increasingly more complex. Analytical methods continue to get more sensitive and sophisticated, and this requires more expertise and a greater focus on instrument service and calibrations. Requirements for accreditation of food testing laboratories are also raising the bar for in-plant labs. Finally, running a food lab requires recruiting and hiring skilled analysts. More food processors are coming to the conclusion that none of these functions are part of their core competencies and are electing to outsource that work to a contract lab.

Food Safety Tech: What does this mean for food contract labs?

Ferguson: This could become a significant business growth opportunity for food contract laboratories. As we indicated in our Food Contract Laboratory market report, microbiology is one of the largest business areas for most food contract laboratories, comprising, on average, approximately 52% of lab revenues and growing on average at 12% annually. The average lab also reports pathogen testing growth at more than 13%. This is remarkable in that the overall growth in sample volume is only growing 6%, so labs are clearly gaining a greater share of samples.

Food Safety Tech: Is this good news for the food contract laboratory companies?

Ferguson: Well, I would say that this will dramatically change the nature of competition and will be good news for some lab companies, namely those who can best adapt to the changing market conditions, but certainly not all. Our analysis shows, for example, that about 70% of pathogen samples outsourced are sent to a lab within 100 miles of the food processing facility. This bodes well for labs with a robust national network of locations. Single-location or limited-location labs may have trouble competing and will be acquired or otherwise may not survive. Also, as more samples get outsourced, the most efficient laboratories will have a competitive advantage. Our data also shows that outsourcing does not occur uniformly across all types and sizes of food processing companies, and laboratories may be at more or less risk depending on their customer mix or concentration in a particular food processing segment. Food contract laboratories that understand these factors will be in a better position to compete and thrive as the market changes.

September 12, 2016

Role Play: Be FDA for a Day

By Food Safety Tech Staff

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During the webinar, Mary Duseau, chief commercial officer at Roka, will review a self-auditing program that companies can use to essentially play FDA for a day—using technology that identifies hidden risks in a food processing facility. REGISTER HERE

Food company executives are in a new world of criminal liability as they navigate a different regulatory environment. During a free webinar next month, attendees can learn how to Play FDA for a Day. Roka Bioscience, along with food safety attorney Shawn Stevens, will discuss:

How to navigate the regulatory environment
Impact of Whole Genome Sequencing
Using accurate pathogen detection technology
Self-auditing of food facilities to avoid regulatory or criminal exposure

“Ensuring your CEO stays out of prison is a great ROI. Food company executives and managers need to perform additional testing to see what FDA will find, and then correct it, before FDA arrives in their facility.” – Shawn K. Stevens

Check out the latest insights from Shawn K. Stevens in his column, Food Safety Attorney

During the 2016 Food Safety Consortium, Shawn Stevens will lead the following panel:

Thursday, 12/8

10:30–11:15 AM

Ask the Experts: Strategies to avoid FDA criminal liability

Round table discussion group lead by Shawn K. Stevens, Global Food Safety Attorney, Food Industry Counsel LLC

LEARN MORE

September 9, 2016

FDA Awards Nearly $22 Million to States for Produce Safety Rule

By Food Safety Tech Staff

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FDA has awarded $21.8 million to 42 states to support the implementation of the FSMA Produce Safety rule. The State Produce Implementation Cooperative Agreement Program (CAP) provides states with the resources to enable the following:

Form a multi-year plan to implement a produce safety system
Education, outreach and technical assistance
Prioritize farming operations covered by the rule
Develop programs to address the needs of farming communities

According to FDA, “the intended outcomes of this cooperative agreement program are to:

Advance efforts for a nationally integrated food safety system (IFSS)
Plan, establish, and/or enhance state and territorial produce safety programs.
Encourage the safe production of fresh fruits and vegetables.
Promote understanding and compliance with the requirements of the Produce Safety Rule.”

Applicants were classified into five tiers of funding eligibility based on the number of farms growing covered produce within the jurisdiction. The agency has also provided a list of funding award amounts by state.

Learn more about FSMA at the 2016 Food Safety Consortium | December 7–8, 2016 | Schaumburg, IL | VIEW AGENDA

September 6, 2016

Industry Needs More Help Understanding Import Safety Under FSMA

By Food Safety Tech Staff

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Need help understanding FSMA? Attend the 2016 Food Safety Consortium, December 7–8 in Schaumburg, IL | LEARN MORE In a 22-page report released last week, FDA outlined its findings from three public meetings held in June about the implementation of the FSMA import safety programs. The report, “Focus on Strategic Implementation of Prevention-Oriented Import Safety Programs”, reviews the questions asked to participants about challenges and understanding in complying with the Foreign Supplier Verification Programs (FSVP), Accredited Third-Party Certification, and the Voluntary Qualified Importer Programs (VQIP) under FSMA. The agency analyzed data from 350 participants, and made the following conclusions:

Industry wants help in understanding what is required under the FSMA provisions, including clearer, concise information from the FDA

Industry may achieve faster compliance with FSVP if members are shown how it differs from existing food safety practices and compliance schemes
Organizing FSVP compliance information by commodity and sector may help in faster comprehension of rule
Small importers and food producers are at higher risk of failing to comply with FSVP
Generating case studies and other foreign supplier education mediums may aid in faster compliance with FSVP requirements
Importers will likely consider cost, return on investment and effort necessary to participant when deciding whether to sign up for VQIP, which will provide expedited clearance to qualified participants
Industry would benefit from FDA sharing information in a faster, clearer and more concise manner
FDA can use its existing facility registration database and existing relationships with industry to continue outreach efforts and elevate FSMA and FSVP compliance awareness

September 1, 2016

Ladder Moves: Q Laboratories

By Food Safety Tech Staff

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The laboratory services company announces several new appointments.

Today Q Laboratories, Inc. announced the following new appointments in a press release:

Michael Baim, PhD.: Analytical Lab Director overseeing everyday operation of the chemistry and analytical research and development laboratories. Baim was previously the chemistry lab supervisor at the company.

Patrick Bird, M.S.: Microbiology Research and Development Laboratory Supervisor. Bird’s previous role at the company was Microbiology R&D Lab Project Leader. He will coordinate the various projects and functions of the microbiology R&D laboratory.

Erin Crowley, M.A.: Chief Scientific Officer. Crowley takes the role following 10 years as Microbiology R&D Lab Supervisor at the company. She will be responsible for acquiring and developing new technology for Q Laboratories and discovering new areas of business and determining the facility requirements of integrating new technologies.

Daniel Barket: Microbiology Technology Leader responsible for transitioning new microbiology technologies into the company’s Microbiology Lab, and investigating cost-efficient and work-flow expedient methodologies to implement into the microbiology laboratory.

August 31, 2016

The Internet of Things Leverages Data for Smarter Farming

By Maria Fontanazza

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Water consumption is a significant concern in the agricultural industry. As farmers face the challenges of long-lasting droughts and high prices for water use, finding ways to conserve water without threatening crops is a high priority.

Mist Labs has developed a technology platform called AgPulse that allows farmers to track their plants and irrigation systems. The technology consists of a set of wireless devices that can be deployed throughout the farm (or more than one location). It tracks data such as irrigation flow information, how much water is going into plants, and how much sun is hitting the plants. The information is fed through a web dashboard in real time, and allows the tracking of historical information for analysis of trends.

Matt Kresse, CEO of Mist Labs, sat down with Food Safety Tech to discuss the AgPulse platform, which also recently won the Proto Labs Cool Idea! Award.

Food Safety Tech: You mentioned that Mist Labs is targeting selling to farmers mainly in the California area. Are you targeting farms of a specific size?

Matt Kresse: Our target initially is large farms, which happened to be first folks with whom we were connected. It might have something to do with the fact that very large farms often have researchers as part of their staff who are most familiar with how to make use of the new data sources that we’re providing. They have also challenges, such as high-level managers who are overseeing many farms, sometimes multiple farms not even in California but worldwide. We’re addressing [a problem they face]—they’re giving prescriptions for how much watering their fields should be getting in the weeks and months ahead. And then there are actual field workers who are doing the surprisingly manual process of opening and closing valves by hand for irrigating blocks on their field, and they’re recording everything on pieces of paper and reporting back. We’re finding that when they do small scale measurements using [instruments] similar to a flow meter and moisture sensors, there’s a large amount of discrepancies between how much they’re prescribing to put on the field and h w much they’re actually putting on the field—it’s anywhere from a 10%–50% discrepancy. That’s’ a problem and can lead to water waste and negative crop outcomes. Particularly with types of crops like fruit and nut crops, if you over-water, it can ruin a crop due to altering the flavor in an unideal way.

Food Safety Tech: Using AgPulse, what’s the technology differentiator versus other current methods?

Kresse: There are not a lot of competitors doing specifically what we’re doing. At best, farms will have a flow meter solution installed on the water main—a large water pipe about 3–4 inches—and that provides water for a very large area or the entire farm. But that doesn’t give you a good sense for how much the individual rows/plants are getting—and that’s what’s really important for the farmer. Our first device can be installed directly in the row, so it connects with the micro-irrigation tubing (it’s very compact). There are other flow meters sized so they can connect with a half-inch or three-quarter inch drip tube, but ours is a really low-profile design so that it can be easily connected with tubing. It avoids a problem when [farmers are] trying to bulk their flow meters in individual rows, [which can cause them to] get wrapped up with the harvesting machinery, and get ripped out, ruining the devices at the end of every year.

“Our low-profile devices are designed to go very close to the plant itself. It’s a long-range, wireless device, so it’s a minimal network deployment—you just put the devices in, and we have one hub that you can place pretty much anywhere in your field. The flow meters send the data to one hub—it’s a very simple deployment in that sense,” says Matt Kresse.

The other thing that no one else is doing: The device has a solar panel to track the solar energy that’s hitting the plant. The growers are placing the device under the canopies of the plant. We’re doing mostly trees and vines. Farmers are very interested in tracking the canopies of the plant over course of the season. This will impact how much they choose to water, when to fertilize, and when to harvest. Messing this up can really impact quality of crop.

Our device is permanently underneath the canopy and sees how much sun information is captured in real time. As the canopy expands and the sun moves over the field over the course of the day, we can track that sun-to-shade ratio. The shade ratio will get bigger as the canopy expands. It gives a nice metric to compare March to July, for example. This is a brand new [feature], and something growers are as excited about as we are—having the real-time flow information.

“The device combines providing data on irrigation and tracking the plant growth. It’s not just a flow meter.” –Matt Kresse, CEO, Mist Labs

Food Safety Tech: How does the use of this technology simplify the entire process for growers?

Kresse: Growers we deal with are sophisticated and are trying to apply deficit irrigation strategies: You water more during an early part of the season and then later in the season, so you cut water at a specific time—it’s what they call applying water stress. That [process] pulls in nutrients from the canopy to the fruit and improves the quality of the fruit by a lot. But doing this requires a precise understanding of how much water is in the plant and being applied to the plant, and how much water stress it’s under. Right now, it’s a manual process, both the watering and the reporting of the watering, so any discrepancies impacts their ability to apply deficit irrigation strategies successfully.

We’re shining a light on this whole process and making it very simple, and reporting out is completely automated for them, so this will greatly simplify the ability to successfully implement deficit irrigation and it’s also in a scalable fashion. If they want to do in another field, it’s just a matter of installing a couple more devices, and the installation process takes minutes.

We can also alert the farmer to leakages or blockages, because we’re tracking the watering over long periods of time. When there’s a sudden increase in the flow rate (or a decrease) that means something most likely happened to the watering structure itself. Leaks can often affect more than 1000 acres—a leak in the corner of your farm could go unnoticed for a while, which might ruin that portion of the crop and is wasting a lot water. [Combine] that with tracking the actual health of the watering structure and the ability to employ deficit irrigation across the entire farm, and we’re comfortable saying that farmers can see about a 20% water savings and improvement of crop yields by around 10%.

August 30, 2016

FSIS Will Start Testing All Pasteurized Egg Products for Listeria

By Food Safety Tech Staff

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Beginning on September 21, FSIS will test all domestic and imported pasteurized egg products for Listeria monocytogenes (Lm). The agency currently tests these products for Lm if they have a shelf-life claim, but the new initiative will test all pasteurized egg products regardless of claims. FSIS is also getting rid of Lm analysis at the end of shelf-life on products with claims under the domestic egg products sampling program (EGGDOM); the agency will instead collect samples of dried, liquid and frozen pasteurized egg products and test them for both Salmonella and Lm.

Food Safety Tech is organizing a Listeria Detection & Control Workshop in Washington, DC, October 6-7. Virtual attendance is also offered for folks unable to travel.

August 29, 2016

FDA Extends Compliance Dates for FSMA Rules, Releases Draft Guidance on PC Rule

By Food Safety Tech Staff

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FDA recently took action to aid industry with the upcoming FSMA compliance dates. The agency issued two draft guidances with the intent of helping both domestic and foreign companies comply with the CGMP requirements and the human food by-product requirements in the FSMA Preventive Controls for Animal Food rule.

FDA is also extending compliance dates for provisions within the FSMA Preventive Controls, Foreign Supplier Verification Programs and Produce Safety rules. According to an agency release:

“The changes include providing more time for manufacturers to meet requirements related to certain assurances that their customers must provide, more time for importers of food contact substances, and other extensions to align compliance dates for various other food operations or provide time for FDA to resolve specified issues. The rule also clarifies the timeframe for agricultural water testing.”

In addition, FDA also released the draft guidance, Classification of Activities as Harvesting, Packing, Holding, or Manufacturing/Processing for Farms and Facilities.

All three drafts are available for public comment. More information is available on FDA’s website.

August 23, 2016

Water Contamination Threat Potentially Everywhere

By Maria Fontanazza

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With water consumption increasing on every continent, the agricultural industry has an important issue in front of them: Will there continue to be enough water of suitable quality for agricultural production for the foreseeable future? Daniel Snow, director of the Nebraska Water Sciences Laboratory at University of Nebraska, posed this question at the IAFP annual meeting earlier this month.

Worldwide, it is estimated that the availability of freshwater (annual per capita) is just 1700 m³. According to the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, when this figure drops below 1000 m³ it puts pressure on not only on the economy but also on human health.

The amount of freshwater available for food production is limited (less than 3% of the world’s water is fresh). Further complicating the matter is the fact that this water comes from many different sources, and emerging contaminants are potentially everywhere. “We don’t really understand the effect [of these contaminants] on the environment or on human health,” said Snow. “We know the compounds occur in the water and likely occur in the food supply, but we don’t really understand the implications.”

According to Snow, there is very little regulation around water used for irrigation. Top concerns surrounding emerging contaminants include:

Water reuse. Recycled wastewater contains traces of the following contaminants, which accumulate over time:
- Xenobiotics (organic compounds)
- Inorganics
- Antibiotic-resistant bacteria/germs. Up to 90% of some of the antibiotics excreted are not metabolized by animals and humans
- Endocrine disrupters (steroids—natural and artificial in running water)
- Pharmaceuticals (both human and veterinary)
Arsenic (namely related to rice production). The element is not only found in soil in Asia but also in soil in certain parts of the United States
Co-occurrence of nitrate and uranium in ground water. There is growing evidence that uranium is being mobilized in water and one study has shown that uranium is readily taken up in food crops

It’s not all doom and gloom, said Snow. The upside to the issue: “We know enough now that we can start to understand the system and hopefully control the contaminants when producing food,” he said. The larger concern is determining which emerging contaminants pose the most significant problem.

August 22, 2016

What’s Hot in Food Safety This Summer

By Food Safety Tech Staff

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With summer feeling like it’s almost over, here’s a look at the stories that have been heating up the food safety space.

5: The Senate Agriculture Committee praises the bill as a “win for consumers”, but there are industry folks who disagree.

Senate Deal Requires Nationwide GMO Labeling

4: Don’t overlook the basics—especially when it comes to document control.

Five Errors That Impact GFSI Compliance

3. Determining whether to initiate a market withdrawal or recall procedure depends on the situation and unfortunately, is not always a clear-cut decision.

Market Withdrawal Vs. Recall: What’s the Difference?

2. According to the CDC, the multi-state outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing E. Coli O121 has sickened at least 42 consumers (with 11 hospitalizations) across 21 states.

More E. Coli Illnesses, General Mills Expands Flour Recall

1. A look at a recently released test that aims to provide more accurate and affordable GMO testing.

Next-Generation Sequencing Targets GMOs

5: The Senate Agriculture Committee praises the bill as a “win for consumers”, but there are industry folks who disagree.

4: Don’t overlook the basics—especially when it comes to document control.

3. Determining whether to initiate a market withdrawal or recall procedure depends on the situation and unfortunately, is not always a clear-cut decision.

2. According to the CDC, the multi-state outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing E. Coli O121 has sickened at least 42 consumers (with 11 hospitalizations) across 21 states.

1. A look at a recently released test that aims to provide more accurate and affordable GMO testing.

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