Listeria Research to Be Conducted in Canada

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), Genome Canada, and Alberta Innovates Bio Solutions have announced their plan to merge and begin Listeria research in Canada to protect consumers from serious foodborne illnesses.

The $600,000 project will record the genome of Listeria bacteria, so that tests of the pathogen can be conducted in a shorter amount of time. It currently takes up to 2 days to identify the presence of Listeria by culture methods plus additional time for confirmations. Through genetic testing, the amount of time it takes to confirm Listeria contamination will decrease and accuracy will improve.

A severe Listeria outbreak occurred in Canada four years ago due to contaminated meat products. The outbreak killed 22 Canadians in Toronto, making it among the highest fatality rate from a foodborne illness in North America. Since the incident, the Canadian government has initiated several food safety recommendations.

Exposure to Listeria can cause a bacterial infection in the body known as Listeriosis. The infection is usually not life-threatening for individuals with a strong immune system, but symptoms typically include severe headache, high fever, nausea, stiffness, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. Children, the elderly, pregnant women, and individuals with a weak immune system are more susceptible to developing a serious infection.

“Victims of Listeria infections usually recover on their own without treatment; however, when the infection is severe, hospitalization may be required,” states Jason Dobranic, Ph.D., Vice President of Microbiology and Life Sciences at EMSL. “EMSL Analytical provides rapid testing services for a variety of bacterial pathogens, including Listeria.”

For more information on EMSL’s testing services, please contact EMSL at (800) 220-3675, visit www.EMSL.com, or email  info@EMSL.com .

About EMSL Analytical, Inc.
EMSL Analytical, Inc. is a full service testing company providing quality lab services under the same private ownership since 1981. Including the corporate lab facility in Cinnaminson, NJ, EMSL Analytical operates over thirty laboratories nationwide in the US and Canada. We provide analytical services for environmental, indoor air quality (IAQ), industrial hygiene, forensics and materials science, consumer products, food safety, PCR, pharmaceutical, asbestos, lead, and radiological samples. The company has an extensive list of accreditations from leading organizations, as well as state and federal regulating bodies. Please see our website for a complete listing of accreditations.

Contact Information

Joseph Frasca

Senior Vice President of Marketing

EMSL Analytical

(1) 1-800-220-3675

jfrasca@emsl.com