Fayetteville, AR – BioDetection Instruments, LLC has received a $100,000 Phase I Small Business Technology Transfer award from the National Science Foundation. The project will demonstrate the feasibility of an innovative bacteriophage based treatment to prevent foodborne illness associated with raw produce.


Although the United States has the safest food supply in the world, contamination of food products by pathogenic bacteria is a major concern of our society. Changes in dietary habits, methods of produce production and processing, sources of produce and the emergence of pathogens previously not recognized for their association with raw produce have enhanced the potential for outbreaks associated with raw fruits and vegetables. Foodborne diseases cause approximately 76 million illnesses, 325,000 hospitalizations, and 5,000 deaths in the United States each year. While produce-based illness is only a portion of these illnesses, we know from last autumn's outbreaks of illness associated with contaminated produce that a bad batch of spinach can easily turn into a costly national outbreak. Large production facilities can afford the cost of disinfectants and the implementation of Good Operating Procedures, small to mid-size farms typically have difficulty with these expenses. Thus, there is a significant need for inexpensive and cost-effective produce decontamination processes. BioDetection Instruments’ biological approach to pathogen reduction in fresh fruits and vegetables is an economically viable method to increase the safety of food production.