Microbiological contaminants working group

Work Group: Microbiological contaminants Leader: Wolfgang Kneifel (BOKU) Co-Leader: Sue Paulin (ESR) Subgroup Leader: Maike Claussen (Eurofins) The presence of bacteria, fungi, viruses, parasites and other microorganisms causes deterioration of food products and may have health implications for consumers. Campylobacter, Salmonella, E. coli, Norovirus, Vibrio, Bacillus cereus, Listeria, Staphylococcus, Clostridium perfringens and Yersinia are a major issue in food quality and safety. New rapid and alternative methods for such contaminants are needed throughout the food supply chain. However, market acceptance is a major problem because of complicated, time-consuming and expensive validation and standardisation protocols, different validation requirements, and official standardised methods. MoniQA is assessing the current status of new and rapid methods for microbiological contamination, defining the discrepancies and determining how these disadvantages may be overcome in the future. The overall aim is to provide a comprehensive pool of information and offer solutions that simplify and speed up validation of new methods.