Platform for the food and beverage industry
Food poisoning is terrible. In most cases, a bacterium is the cause. Therefore, it is the job of food producers to control the number of bacteria in their products. And that's a problem for them because a test via plating bacteria takes 2-3 days before the results are in. Modern alternatives such as PCR and spectrometry are much more expensive and offer only a partial solution: they measure fragments of bacteria that are also still present in the form of dead bacteria after pasteurization, for example.
Pasteurization, UV light treatments and other methods of killing bacteria in food is a precarious process. Many times, if these methods are applied for too long, they impair the texture, color, taste, nutritional value, et cetera of the product. Companies want to apply this as briefly as possible but it must be long enough to get rid of all the live bacteria. Measuring bacteria after treatment is therefore essential. Rapid measuring methods give false positive measurement results and the alternative, measuring via plating, takes far too long.
Sensip-dx has a unique solution to this by measuring live bacteria in 15 minutes.
When measurement results arrive via plating, the products are often already packaged and stored. In some cases, the products are already in transit. In any case, the products are refrigerated while waiting for the test result. If they test positive for bacterial contamination, the products are either discarded or reprocessed if possible. Already shipped products are recalled. This leads to high logistics costs and the maintenance of additional, often refrigerated, buffer stocks.
If a food producer can measure bacteria in the production process more often and earlier, then measures can be taken much earlier to prevent contamination of the final product. Products will flow through the chain faster and fresher. This saves money and prevents food waste.
New measurement technology Sensip-dx is developing a device that measures the number of live bacteria present in 15 minutes. Sensip-dx is a spin-out from Maastricht University (UM). Over the past 10 years, several universities have worked on this principle and published successes in more than 100 articles. In 2016, UM patented new inventions to which Sensip-dx has worldwide exclusive rights.
A sensor binds a particular type of live bacteria. Several sensors are contained in a cartridge that is loaded into the measuring device. The cartridge is for single use and can be fitted with the desired sensors for measuring for the presence and number of specific bacteria for each customer or application.
After loading the sample into the cartridge, the user presses a button and without further user intervention, the result is known 15 minutes later. The result can be transferred directly to the user's ERP and/or QRM system.
Using the same technique, Sensip-dx can also measure molecules. These can be toxic molecules such as crop pesticide residues or antibiotics, as well as desirable molecules such as vitamins and fragrances and flavors. Again, both the presence and an indication of quantity are given.
The first prototype will be tested in practice in the coming months. The experiences will be incorporated into improved types and by the end of 2014 Sensip-dx plans to introduce the first commercial version to the market.
Sensip-dx is still looking for food companies willing to participate in field tests over the next few months. Sensip-dx is analyzing with the participating companies how Sensip-dx technology can lead to significant cost reduction.
Learn more: www.sensipdx.com
