LES EXPERTS ONT LA PAROLE

“Campylobacter, the discreet bacterium” is the title of the new book published by Betelgeux, in which seven experts specialised in different areas tackle the most relevant issues related to food safety and controlling Campylobacter spp. Campylobacter was first described in 1886 by the German paediatrician and bacteriologist Theodore Escherich as curved or spiral bacteria present in the colon […]

Hygiene is essential to achieve safe and good quality food. Hygiene practices must be efficient at all stages of the food chain, from production to consumption, in order to avoid errors that may cause foodborne diseases or alterations that reduce their useful life. In the European Union, health regulations on food have a strongly preventive […]

In food industries, in addition to producing the largest possible number of processed food units, they must be of adequate quality. In this sense, they must be safe, not produce any toxicity to the people consuming them, and maintain the physical-chemical and organoleptic characteristics in all lots throughout their commercial life. An important aspect is […]

Escherichia coli bacterium was initially isolated and described by the German pediatrician Escherich in 1885, who proved its existence as a regular host in the intestine. He named it Bacterium coli commune, which can be translated as « common colon bacteria ». In 1919 Castellani and Chalmers gave it its definitive name in homage to Escherich. Escherichia quickly became […]

Food safety has become an aspect of primary importance in a globalised world, where economic benefits in search of food quality and safety predominate in most cases. Clear examples of this are the latest food crises that have taken place worldwide. While food safety consists in ensuring the population’s adequate nutrition in some countries, in […]

Cleaning, sanitising and disinfecting are three essential processes in the food industry. Three actions whose objective is ensuring food safety, thus preventing food poisoning, in addition extending the products’ commercial life. Out of these three sanitation phases in the food industry, based on its importance, we will focus our attention on the disinfection of surfaces […]

Have you ever had the thought, usually accompanied by a sinking feeling of foreboding, “how on Earth am I going to get this clean again ?”. Success in cleaning delicate textiles lies, above all, in taking the right decision on how to process the dirty textile. When the textile comes in, it is inspected for […]

Quaternary ammonium compounds (QAC) are active biocide substances widely used in disinfectants utilised in the food industry to sanitise surfaces and facilities. Its main use derives from its properties: They have a broad biocide spectrum, being effective against the most common pathogens in the food industry They are safe when properly handled by operators They […]

Bacteria commonly found in the environment, present in food industries on floors, tools and surfaces and in water and air…, they can live in humans and animals. They are one of the most resistant non-spore-forming pathogens and can survive for long periods of time in low humidity environments. They grow between 7ºC up to 47.8ºC, […]

It is a group of prokaryotic morphology unicellular microorganisms (without nucleus), which are part of one of the three great living beings’ domains: archaea, bacteria and eukaryotes. Archaea are microscopic organisms, (size between 0.1 μm to more than 15 μm), which may have flagella. Their cells are surrounded by a cover (cell wall) with membrane […]

One of the biggest concerns in terms of hygiene in the food industry is the formation of bacterial biofilms. Biofilms are groups of microorganisms that accumulate on a solid-liquid interface and are surrounded by a mucilaginous matrix[1]. The biofilm matrix is the extracellular material, mostly produced by the microorganisms themselves, in which the biofilm cells […]

In the eyes of the general public, chemical companies do not have the best reputation. They are often associated with water and air pollution, health risks via contact with products, danger of accidents in the factories, dumping of chemical waste… Even though the chemical industry has dramatically improved its environmental performance, the public’s perception goes […]