Growing public concern could foster significant change in European food safety systems, and increased regulations and testing volumes should follow suit, according to Food Micro—6: Food Microbiology Testing in Europe, a new market report from Strategic Consulting, Inc.
Woodstock, VT December 12, 2011 — Europe is a substantial market for food safety microbiology testing. The population of the 27 countries of the European Union is 500 million, nearly 60% greater than the US population. Altogether, EU countries performed an estimated 275 million food micro tests in 2011. In comparison, there were 213 million such tests conducted in the US in 2010.
Food Micro, Sixth Edition: Food Microbiology Testing in Europe from Strategic Consulting, Inc. (SCI) is the first definitive report focusing exclusively on the European food safety microbiology testing market. Food Micro—6 reviews the important markets, methods, technologies and trends shaping food safety testing in Europe.
In addition to size, the European food safety testing market differs from the US market in areas such as methods used, organisms tested, and current and pending regulations. As a result, says Thomas Weschler, president of SCI and lead author of Food Micro—6, “Europe must be examined and understood as a separate entity as it relates to food microbiology testing, and not simply thought of and treated as ‘like the US.’”
“Europe must be examined and understood as a separate entity as it relates to food microbiology testing, and not simply thought of and treated as ‘like the US.’”
A strong global link between the European and US food markets remains however, Weschler says. Key global food companies such as Nestle and Kraft have a significant presence in both geographies. European consumers, like their American counterparts, want access to all types of food year-round and as a result draw increasingly from a global food supply.
At the same time, there is a growing public awareness of food safety issues, with the recent E. coli outbreak in Germany only one of the incidents heightening concern about contaminants in the food supply. “Growing public concern about food safety could ramp up change in Europe, and increased regulations and testing volumes should follow suit,” Weschler says.
In preparing this new and comprehensive review of the European food microbiology testing market, Strategic Consulting (SCI) conducted more than 175 detailed interviews in 11 European countries representing more than 75% of all food production in the EU. Through this primary research at food-processing plants throughout Europe, Food Micro—6 offers new data on European food safety testing practices including overall test volume, cost per test, and methods used for routine and pathogen testing. Differences in testing practices within food segments and countries also are detailed, and expected changes in future testing practices are discussed.
Like all SCI publications, Food Micro—6 is based on new, primary research and industry-specific expertise and analysis. Food Micro—6 incorporates:
• Lengthy interviews with food processing plants in the meat, dairy, fruit/vegetable, and processed food segments in 11 European countries representing more than 75% of the total food production in the EU.
• A discussion of key drivers for food microbiology testing, and a country-by-country comparison of total testing, organisms tested, and methods used.
• Test volumes, methods, and products used for routine, environmental and pathogen tests for TVO, Coliform, Yeast/Mold, ATP, Staphylococcus, Salmonella, Listeria, L. mono, E. coli O157, and Campylobacter.
• Forecasts for the state of the market in 2016 including routine, pathogen and overall test volumes and market values.
• Insights from Strategic Consulting’s principals honed over more than 75 combined years in the worldwide industrial diagnostics marketplace.
Strategic Consulting’s long tenure in the industrial diagnostics industry includes the publication of 14 research reports addressing critical market topics over the last 15 years. Strategic Consulting market research reports are widely accepted by leading diagnostic manufacturers and investors as highly credible analyses of the industry.
Food Micro—6 will publish in January 2012 but orders placed before January 16, 2012 can receive a pre-publication savings of $500 off the report price.
For more information on Food Micro—6, request a prospectus, email info@strategic-consult.com, or call (802) 457-9933.
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Strategic Consulting, Inc. (SCI) provides market reports and business consulting for industrial diagnostics companies delivering microbiology-based products for quality and safety testing in food, beverages, pharmaceuticals, personal care products, environmental water, and industrial-process water. For more information on Strategic Consulting, Inc. and its current market reports, visit www.strategic-consult.com or call 802-457-9933. Follow SCI president and industry expert, Thomas R. Weschler, on LinkedIn or Twitter @tomweschler.
A paper was recently published on the technology entitled, “Reduction of food matrix interference by a combination of sample preparation and multi-dimensional gating techniques to facilitate rapid, high sensi-tivity analysis for Escherichia coli serotype O157 by flow cytometry.” Researched and published by an independent third-party, the paper is available 
