Source: MORPHIX TECHNOLOGIES, INC. submitted to NRP
SANITIZATION ASSURANCE INDICATOR FOR FOOD FACILITIES
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
COMPLETE
Funding Source
SMALL BUSINESS GRANT
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1015887
Grant No.
2018-33610-28506
Cumulative Award Amt.
$100,000.00
Proposal No.
2018-00731
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Aug 15, 2018
Project End Date
Apr 14, 2019
Grant Year
2018
Program Code
[8.5]- Food Science & Nutrition
Recipient Organization
MORPHIX TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
2557 PRODUCTION RD
VIRGINIA BEACH,VA 23454
Performing Department
(N/A)
Non Technical Summary
The food supply chain consists of many potential contamination points including growing, harvesting, post-harvest handling, transport, processing, distribution, storage and packaging, and finally preparation by the consumer. There are 9.6 million cases of foodborne illness annually in US with an annual economic impact of $15.5 billion. Contamination also leads to spoilage of food and significant loss of food supply. The annual cost of produce spoilage losses in the US exceeds $50 billion. This loss is significantly higher in developing countries due to less sophisticated harvesting and processing equipment and practices. The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (U.S. FDA) Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) was signed into law in 2011. The law requires small and large businesses to comply with FSMA rules for preventive control of food contamination. For equipment and tools, the regulation requires that "food contact surfaces of such equipment be inspected, maintained, and cleaned and sanitized, when necessary and appropriate, as frequently as reasonably necessary to protect against contamination of covered produce". Additionally, "instruments or controls used to measure sanitizer efficacy in order to control or prevent the growth of undesirable microorganisms or other contamination must be accurate and precise, and adequate in number for their designated uses". Thus, regular effective sanitization of equipment and buildings in contact with food along with instruments and controls to accurately and precisely measure sanitization efficacy are requirements for all non-exempt produce businesses.The major goals of this project include the development and demonstration of a chlorine dioxide (CD) colorimetric dosimeter sensor which accurately, and with high precision, indicates visually when an efficacious dose (concentration x time) of CD has been reached in a given space. The proposed work will demonstrate a simple, low-cost sanitization assurance dosimeter that will facilitate cost-effective compliance of growers and distributors with FSMA sanitation requirements, leading to a significant reduction in foodborne illness and food spoilage, and their associated costs.
Animal Health Component
50%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
50%
Developmental
50%
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
50140102000100%
Knowledge Area
501 - New and Improved Food Processing Technologies;

Subject Of Investigation
4010 - Bacteria;

Field Of Science
2000 - Chemistry;
Goals / Objectives
The major goals of this project include the development and demonstration of a chlorine dioxide (CD) colorimetric dosimeter sensor which accurately, and with high precision, indicates visually when an efficacious dose (concentration x time) of CD has been reached in a given space. Correlation of dosimeter visual indication, actual CD dose, and log reduction of relevant microorganisms in high fidelity laboratory studies will facilitate the use of the dosimeter in field applications where real-time sanitization assurance is most cost-effective. The proposed work will demonstrate a simple, low-cost sanitization assurance dosimeter that will facilitate cost-effective compliance of growers and distributors with FSMA sanitation requirements.Objective 1: Sanitization Assurance Indicator (SAI) Prototype Design, Development and ManufactureObjective 2: Microbial Reduction Correlation Studies
Project Methods
Formulated chemsitries will be evaluated for accurate colorimetric indication of relevant CD dose targets for effective microbial reduction. Anayltical generation/exposure systems will be used to deliver specified CD doses to prototype sensors. Colorimetric responses wil be measured using a spectrodensitometer in reflectance mode. In conjunction with these studies, high fidelity microbial reductionstudies will be carried out in the presence of SAI prototypes to demonstrate correlation of colorimetric indicator response with reduction of relevant microbes.

Progress 08/15/18 to 04/14/19

Outputs
Target Audience: Nothing Reported Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Nothing Reported How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Nothing Reported What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? The food supply chain consists of many potential contamination points including growing, harvesting, post-harvest handling, transport, processing, distribution, storage and packaging, and finally preparation by the consumer. Food can become contaminated with harmful microorganisms at any point in the supply chain. If left unchecked, microbial contamination can cause foodborne illness if the consumer eats contaminated food. There are 9.6 million cases of foodborne illness annually in US, causing 57,462 hospitalizations, 1,451 deaths, and an annual economic impact of $15.5 billion. The proposed work includedthe development of a passive chlorine dioxide colorimetric dosimeter for sanitization assurance of facilities, buildings, and equipment associated with food processing and transportation. The proposed technology supports the unique sanitization requirements of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), which includes requirements for nearly all participants in the food supply chain to implement appropriate controls to avoid contamination of processed foods. The overall objective of the work wasto provide a proof of concept prototype which demonstratedindication of chlorine dioxide at a specified dose required to achieve targeted micro-organism kill rates. If commercialized, thetechnology developed under this effort could lead to a low-cost, real-time chemical indicator that can be used by the food industry to demonstrate sanitization of equipment and facilities. While this capability will be useful to all participants in the food supply chain, it will be especially helpful in enabling FSMA compliance by small businesses in the food supply chain, which in turn will provide enhanced sanitization assurance of facilities to users, widespread prevention of foodborne illness resulting from cross-contamination of food lots at facilities in the supply chain, reduction in healthcare costs associated with foodborne illness, and enhanced food safety for the consumer. The following two objectives were proposed for the proof-of-concept demonstration in this effort: Objective 1: Sanitization Assurance Indicator (SAI) Prototype Design, Development and Manufacture Objective 2: Microbial Reduction Correlation Studies Objective 1: Sanitization Assurance Indicator (SAI) Prototype Design, Development and Manufacture Under this effort, several sanitization assurance indicator (SAI) designs and colorimetric chemistries were evaluated for efficacy in visually indicating a predefined dose of chlorine dioxide (CD) gas in a confined space. A prototype indicator design was downselected based on accuracy and precision of CD dose indication and applicability/ease-of-use in sanitization of produce processing facilities. The Phase I prototype SAI performed with high precision and accuracy in the visual indication of a two hour dose of CD in a confined space. To assess the performance of the SAI under varying environmental conditions simulating those in produce processing facilities, test were conducted under a wide range of temperatures and relative humidity. The SAI was shown to perform well under a range of humidities (20-90 %RH) at ambient temperature. Additionally, efforts were successful in demonstrating the tunability of the SAI for indication of different CD doses, thus supporting a wide range of applications in the produce and other industries. Objective 2: Microbial Reduction Correlation Studies Prototype SAIs were tested at a third-party lab to study the correlation of SAI visual indication with relevant microbe (E. coli strains, Salmonella strains, Listeria monocytogenes, and clostridium perfringens) reduction levels to show the practical value of the developed technology in providing a tool for produce processors to ensure their facilities were FSMA compliant and safe to use on a real-time basis. The results of these studies demonstrated trhat SAI indicators precisely and accurately indicated a targeted CD dose in the presence of three strains of Escherichia coli 0157:H7 (ATCCs: 43895, 35750, 43888), three strains of Salmonella enterica (ATCCs: 709, 1673, 9712), and one strain of Listeria monocytogenes (ATCC: 15313). The visual indication correlated with 6-log reduction (99.9999% reduction) of all strains of E. coli, Salmonella enterica, and listeria monocytogenes. In separate experiments, the SAI visual indication of CD dose target correlated with a 3-log reduction (99.9% reduction) of clostridium perfringens bacterial endospores. This Phase I effort helped establish the scientific foundation of the proposed technology and demonstrated proof-of-concept of a simple, yet highly effective SAI for use in produce processing facilities.

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