Nestle to open more than 20 new labs to study food-borne pathogens
Switzerland-based, Nestle SA, announced Thursday the opening of more than 20 advanced research laboratories to study food-borne pathogens that are harmful to human health, according to a press release May 30.
Norovirus Image/CDC
According to the global food and drink manufacturer, the new facilities at the Nestlé Research Center in Switzerland will have a high level of ‘bio-containment’, meaning certain areas will be sealed with access restricted to trained personnel who must wear protective clothing and adhere to strict hygiene procedures.
The company is using the most sophisticated scientific techniques available to refine the processes it uses to kill pathogens without destroying the nutritional value of its food.
The new labs will be equipped with the most advanced technology in the food industry to include a Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) laboratory, which can be used for the identification and characterization of bacteria, which can also be used to detect in raw materials species of meat that may be used to commit food fraud, a molecular typing laboratory, to “fingerprint” microorganisms and a P3 laboratory, where research on food borne viruses such as norovirus and pathogenic strains of E. coli will be conducted.
“We constantly face familiar pathogens like salmonella, but there are newer threats as these pathogens evolve,” said Nestlé’s Chief Technology Officer Werner Bauer. “We have to stay one step ahead.
“The research done here will undoubtedly be a great asset for Nestlé, but we also have a responsibility to communicate and share the results with the scientific community and consumers, so everyone can benefit.”
“Consumer health and safety are at very core of what we do today, and what we have always done.
“We need more data and more state-of-the-art technologies to guide our product development and to ensure our products continue to be absolutely safe.”
The Nestlé Research Center (NRC) based in Lausanne, Switzerland, was inaugurated in June 1987.
