Food Protection Trends - April 2009 - 231

Industry Products to see, while excluding fibrous food debris such as meat or fish from the count. This helps reduce manual analysis and means results are quickly obtained. Results from the ProtoCOL system are highly reproducible and can be automatically transferred into Excel where a sample name can be entered into the database, thereby reducing the operator variation that can occur from different microbiologists’ manual colony counts. An image library is also created alongside the Excel database making it easy to produce evidence for each food tested and allowing lab managers the option to re-visit a plate if there is any query after its disposal. The ProtoCOL software is GLP compliant and tracks any changes to results, making the ProtoCOL ideal for use as part of a HACCP program. Paula Maia of Synbiosis commented: “Rapid microbiological testing of food products and raw materials is vitally important in food production. However, the accurate analysis of colonies on plates is frequently made difficult by the presence of debris or bubbles, either embedded within or on the agar’s surface. By utilizing the ProtoCOL’s excellent new software features, microbiologists can overcome these problems with ease to ensure food and ingredients are released more rapidly, thus saving money on storage costs and allowing products to have a longer shelf life.” Synbiosis 44 (0) 1462.635327 Hitchin, Hertfordshire, UK www.synbiosis.com Thermo Fisher Scientific Develops Hydride Generation AA Solution for Accurate Analysis of Mercury in Fish hermo Fisher Scientific Inc., a leader in serving science, announced the publication of a new application note demonstrating the capability of the Thermo Scientific iCE 3000 Series AA spectrometers and Thermo Scientific VP100 vapor generation accessory to accurately detect trace levels of mercury in fish. Mercury is a significant environmental toxin that is capable of entering the marine food chain. The consumption of contaminated fish is the main route of human exposure to mercury, which can prove fatal. The application note entitled “Accurate analysis of low levels of mercury in fish by hydride generation AA,” gives details of the reagents, sample preparation and instrument conditions needed to accurately analyze low levels of mercury. It is available to download free-of-charge via the literature library at www.thermo.com/ice. Growing concerns about the possible presence of this toxic chemical in the food supply chain have led to tighter restrictions on its presence in the food we eat. Countries and organizations around the world have developed regulations that enforce maximum concentrations of mercury in fish of approximately 0.5 mg/kg wet weight. Coupled with the VP100 vapor generation accessory, the iCE 3000 Series AA spectrometers are capable of reaching detection limits of 0.014 mg/kg. The sensitivity and precision of this configuration easily T Synbiosis Synbiosis New Automated Colony Counter Saves Food Manufacturers Money by Rapidly Detecting Hazardous Organisms ynbiosis, manufacturer of automated microbiological systems, is pleased to announce its ProtoCOL automated colony counter which offers new features to exclude food debris from the count. This makes counting faster and more reliable, ensuring microbiologists can easily determine the levels of bacteria or molds in food earlier, thus avoiding costly product recalls. The ProtoCOL system’s new software can simultaneously analyze images of the same or several different colored colonies on spiral, pour or surface inoculated plates and has different levels of user access to provide lab managers with control of the system. The software has been upgraded so microbiologists can train the ProtoCOL to automatically recognize by either color and shape colonies they would expect S Be sure to mention, “I read about it in Food Protection Trends”! The publishers do not warrant, either expressly or by implication, the factual accuracy of the products or descriptions herein, nor do they so warrant any views or opinions offered by the manufacturer of said articles and products. APRIL 2009 | FOOD PROTECTION TRENDS 231
http://www.thermo.com/ice http://www.synbiosis.com
Food Protection Trends - April 2009

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Food Protection Trends - April 2009
