Food safety depends largely on the cleaning and disinfection practices of food manufacturing facilities. A new mobile device from Romer Labs helps measure bacteria quickly.
The absence of bacteria (like Salmonella and Listeria) in food processing environments is essential for preventing illness and increasing shelf life and quality of food products.
Current test methods, like ATP swabs, are a useful indicator of cleaning efficacy but do not tell the user if surfaces are properly disinfected.
Traditional plate count methods also have limitations in that they take days to return a result and only one per cent of all bacteria is culturable.
According to Romer, the CytoQuant is a world first, hand-held, mobile impedance flow cytometer. Using a swab test to detect and measure all bacteria and residues on food processing surfaces, it can provide results in 30 seconds, the company adds.
Bacterial cells have a non-conductive cell membrane and a conductive cytoplasm.
These unique electrical properties act as a fingerprint, allowing CytoQuant to distinguish between bacteria and other particles in a sample.
Romer says, “It is currently the only solution on the market able to provide a clear picture about the microbiological condition of production surfaces in real time.
“The test is simple to use anddoesn’t require any special training, allowing QC managers to make fast and informed decisions during food production while also improving the efficiency of cleaning procedures.”
The device provides separate, precise results for bacteria (intact cells/mL) and residues (particles/mL). CytoQuant measurements are not influenced by disinfectants or temperature, with no need for pre-treatment, incubation or chemical reagents.
This article first appeared in the June edition of Food & Drink Business magazine.
