bioMérieux innovates in food quality testing

Marcy l'Etoile, France - January 31, 2005. bioMérieux, world leader in the field of food microbiology controls, extends its product offer dedicated to the food industry with the launch of the TEMPO® system, the first automated solution for microbial enumeration.

Global leader in the field of automated solutions for industrial microbiology in the food, pharmaceutical and cosmetics sectors, bioMérieux has developed this entirely new concept for the enumeration of micro-organisms in food products in close collaboration with international food microbiology experts and customers. TEMPO is initially being launched in Europe with applications for meat and meat-based products.

The applications for this new system concern the most important market segment of microbiological controls performed in the food industry. In fact, 80% of routine tests performed in food testing laboratories involve microbial enumeration. The purpose of these tests is to validate both the commercial value of finished products, from plant release to shelf-life expiration, and the high quality of food products for the end consumer.

TEMPO offers significant benefits to industrial microbiology laboratories. By reducing the number of operations at each step of the analysis process, TEMPO frees up valuable laboratory staff-time for more value-added tasks. TEMPO offers fully automated reading, as well as complete traceability through the unique bar-code on each TEMPO card, thereby limiting the risk of error and reducing the costs of non-quality. Earlier detection of possible product non-conformities enables laboratories to be more pro-active and to anticipate on potential production issues. “The TEMPO system will enable food laboratories to save time and costs throughout the microbial enumeration process” states Claude Terrot, Executive Vice-President Industrial Microbiology at bioMérieux.

Although the bacteria enumerated by TEMPO® are not necessarily pathogenic, they can rapidly alter the appearance and taste of a product when present in large quantities. “bioMérieux’s objective was to develop a simple and innovative solution that would bring microbial enumeration into the era of automation” adds Benoit Adelus, Executive Vice-President of bioMérieux.

As with all bioMérieux solutions for industrial microbiology, TEMPO is currently undergoing validation by official organizations.