Quickly Faster is better when it comes to finding the source of food safety problems.
Food contamination can bring more than a passing stomachache.
E. coli, for example, has been linked to severe illnesses and deaths around the world. A lack of rapid detection tests has aggravated the problem. California researchers at UC-Davis developed a sensitive, reliable test for E. coli that can be completed in 8 hours rather than the two days needed for current procedures. The test, which can detect even a single E. coli bacterium, can warn consumers more quickly about this deadly contaminant. Now, researchers are experimenting with extending the test strategy to Vibrio vulnificus, a bacterium associated with seafood, and Salmonella, associated with poultry.