Continued on back cover

HIGHLIGHTSk Fisher brings together two top names in microbiology—REMEL AND OXOID k Focus on Fisher’s Finest—Sales Manager, Mark Muellerk Rapid Test methods—Which one is the right one? k Restek Corp. offers a method for Acrylamide detection by GC

Remel and Oxoid—Together a New Beginning

Both Remel and Oxoid have merged intoone company which will operate underRemel Inc. in the US.

What does the name mean to ourcustomers?

All Oxoid products are available and willcontinue to be available from Remel.The combined Remel and Oxoid portfoliooffers unique products with superior per-formance and strong brand recognition.Remel offers fresh products with lot andexpiration date control. Remel TechnicalService offers greater than 100 years ofcombined microbiology expertise to sup-port their products. All Remel manufac-turing facilities adhere to the latest FDAQuality Systems Regulations (QSR) andare ISO 9001:2000-certified to assure

available formulations and formats. Theirfresh products offer optimal recovery anddifferentiation of microorganisms.

In addition, the 11-Series PreparedCulture Media are formulated specificallyfor industry and reference the appropri-ate guidelines, including AOAC, BAM,or USDA.

In many cases, quality-control testingprocedures for their industrial productsare more extensive in order to meet referenced guidelines. Remel welcomesrequests for custom media formulationsand packaging alternatives to meet yourlaboratory’s specific requirements.

Dilution Bottles

Dilution Bottles offer a convenient color-coded solution for sample preparation.Phosphate Butterfield Buffer andPhosphate Magnesium Chloride Bufferare available in 90 and 99mL formats.Each format is color coded for easy iden-tification. The wide-mouth opening andhinged lid allow for easy use and pro-mote aseptic technique. They are gammasterilized and feature an indicator labelon the outside of each box. A Certificateof Quality is packaged inside each box.

Dehydrated Culture Media

Both Remel and Oxoid are trusted namesin microbiology media manufacturing,with greater than 100 years of combinedexperience. The stringent quality-controlprocedures used in the manufacturing ofRemel and Oxoid Dehydrated CultureMedia and Components assure accuracy,reproducibility, and performance.

The quality of Remel and Oxoid productsand their team of knowledgeable techni-

See you at the Summit!The Annual Food Safety Summit will be held March 16-18, 2005 in Washington, DC and Fisher Scientific will be there! Come visit booth #329to find out how Fisher can be your one-source solutions provider for food diagnostics products and services and save you time and money.

Last March, Fisher Scientific announcedthe acquisition of Oxoid. Oxoid is one of the world leaders of microbiologicalculture media as well as the largest manufacturer of peptones in the world.

With Fisher’s acquisition of Oxoid, ourproduct offering in microbiology becameone of the broadest offered in the world,including both dehydrated culture mediaand rapid pathogen test kits.

Remel’s combined product portfolio ofover 6,000 products can be used by any laboratory performing microbiologyquality assurance testing in the food andbeverage, pharmaceutical, biotechnology,environmental, academic and researchmarkets.

Fisher Scientific is pleased to an-nounce, effective February 1, 2005,yet another expansion of our alreadyextensive microbiological product line.

Remel—a leading manufacturer ofdiagnostic products worldwide—joinsthe Fisher family.

accurate, reproducible performance.Certificates of Quality are available uponrequest.

The Remel (Oxoid) portfolio fallsinto these major categories:

Prepared Culture Media, DehydratedCulture Media, Antisera, AtmosphericGeneration Systems, Media Supplements,Diagnostic/Rapid Tests and Kits, QualityControl Organisms, and Reagents andStains.

Featured categories include:

Prepared Culture Media

Remel’s comprehensive Prepared CultureMedia portfolio includes both routine andspecialty media, totaling more than 1,700

FoodTrack_Spring_2005.qxd 2/23/2005 2:31 PM Page 2

FOCUS ON FISHER'S FINEST Rapid Methods—which one is right for your company?

Food microbiological testing has beenmoving in a specific direction lately—RAPID TESTING. At least, that’s what wein the industry are calling it. “Rapid” isvery relative. It can mean that more test-ing can be done in the normal work shiftor that it simply takes less time to get aresult. These methods give the user timeto release their lots and keep theirprocess flowing. Similarly, it allows theQA technician to sleep at night, knowingthat the lines are being kept sanitaryduring processing and at the end of eachshift. Here’s the key: the tests give theuser the ability to continue the processas long as the results are negative.

The questions become: How do youknow which rapid method to choose, andwhich method is the right one for yourprocess? How many times do I sample?Where do I sample? Is this kit approved?Does it work on raw and cooked meat?These are all excellent questions, and allshould be considered when you choose a test kit.

Appropriateness

The first issue is “Appropriateness” andrecognizes the fact that each facility hasdifferent needs which will determine the appropriateness of a specific rapid testkit for a plant or lab. Kits will vary onlevel of difficulty to perform. If you planon using the kit on your plant floor, thena kit with 10 reagents and 30 steps isprobably not for you. You also may wantto look at how the results are presented.Some are quantitative, while others arequalitative and give only yes/no answers.Depending on what you are doing withthe results, you may want more quantita-tive numbers for a statistical analysisdown the road. Finally, rapid test kit performance will vary in different food or beverage matrices. You should alwayscheck into the manufacturer’s recom-mendations on using the kit with yourparticular food product. Ask for data on how the kits perform with your type of food product.

HACCP Programs

HACCP is essentially a universal standardin the industry today, with most foodprocessors adopting the practices sinceHACCP was mandated in 2000 for meatprocessors. Your current HACCP programor Total Quality Management plan (TQM)should outline a sampling program

detailing specific samplingpoints throughout your facility.

Sample collection points should be considered as well as sample collection tech-niques. Typically, rapid test kitshave a specific sample collec-tion method specified. A rea-sonability check should be doneto make sure these methodswould not interfere with whatyou have called out in your current HACCP or TQM plan(s).

AOAC Certification

Lastly, how do you know you are gettingaccurate results? If you talk to the manu-facturers of test kits, they will tell youthat theirs is definitely the best. (It alwaysis.) Each manufacturer has data showinghow its kit delivers proven test results invaried matrices. Great, but do they haveany independent studies? So how do youknow which one is best?

Probably the best way to select a rapid test kit is to chose one that has been evaluated by the Association of Analytical Communities (AOACInternational). The AOAC is well knownfor numerous proven analytical methodsused by hundreds of thousands of labo-ratories every day. It also has a sub-sidiary that administers a program toevaluate rapid test kits. The AOAC

Research Institute(AOAC RI) was incor-porated in December1991 as a subsidiaryof AOAC International.The AOAC RI is anonprofit, worldwide,scientific organizationwhich administers the PerformanceTested MethodsProgram and providesconsulting services toassist development ofanalytical methods.

The Performance Tested MethodsProgram provides an independent third-party review of test kit performanceclaims. Test kits found to be consistentwith their claims are granted“Performance Tested Methods” status by the AOAC RI. This status assures the test kit user that an independentassessment has been conducted, andthe kit performed as claimed. ThePerformance Tested Methods Programprovides a rapid entry point into theAOAC validation process and provides,where warranted, rapid approval.

The AOAC-RI program evaluates rapidtest kits in the areas of microbiological,antibiotic, food pathogen, toxin and biochemical testing. It also gives a summary of matrices and claims forwhich the kits were tested. Essentially,

by referring to this program, you canselect from a list of numerous “pre-evaluated” rapid test kits.

One word of caution! The AOAC doesprovide a database of rapid test kits on the AOAC Web site. These kits are NOTPerformance Tested Methods and do nothave an issued license number. If you arelooking at a database and a particulartest kit does not have a license number,the test kit is NOT included in thePerformance Based Methods database.

To be included on the list, companiesmust submit their test kits to the AOACwith their evaluation data. These are then tested and evaluated internally byAOAC, and an independent evaluation isset up. Once the independent evaluationis conducted, the data is reviewed, and arecommendation for approval is made.The approval process must be reviewedeach year to continue to maintain thetest kit on the list.

The last step in the AOAC approvalprocess is the more rigorous “OfficialMethods of Analysis” (OMA) approval,“the holy grail” of approvals and typicallythe final objective of most test kit manu-facturers. While there is no regulatorybody that mandates or endorses one kitover another, the AOAC approval is asclose to an acceptance criteria as is currently available. There are risks tousing a rapid test kit that has not beenevaluated by AOAC.

At the time this article was written, Ispoke with Scott Coates, ManagingDirector of AOAC, who informed me ofplans to launch a “Learning Center” onthe AOAC Web site especially designedto help users select appropriate rapidtest kits. So keep an eye to the Web forthe AOAC update.

References:

www.aoac.org/testkits/testkits.html

By Sue Benes, Fisher Scientific

Mark MuellerMark Mueller has been with Fisherfor 12 years. Mark is a sales manager for the Fisher ScientificCentral Region where he managesnumerous accounts including manyfood processors.

Fisher: What do you enjoy mostabout your job?Mark: It's a real pleasure to workwith such a diverse group of peo-ple—customers, suppliers and myFisher colleagues.

Fisher: What were your major accomplishments in 2004?

Mark: Well, I was successful inbringing two major opportunities toFisher—one for the Illinois PublicHigher Education Cooperative(IPHEC), and Archer DanielsMidland (ADM).

Fisher: Tell us a little about ADM.

Mark: ADM is one of the largestagri-food businesses in the world.ADM has fully integrated productionfacilities across the globe—fromfield to factory to distribution chan-nels. Their primary focus is cornand soybean by-products that ulti-mately feed people, animals, andeven plants. Fisher recently had thepleasure of being awarded this contract. The relationship betweenFisher and ADM will be a dynamicone. We can all look forward toworking with them this year and in the years to come.

Fisher: What challenges do your customers face in 2005?

Mark: More stringent quality con-trol and quality assurance testingfor their products. The regulationsget tougher every year. ADM, forexample, faces higher qualitydemands from their customersacross the board, and they have avery diverse portfolio of products.The additional QA/QC forces themto mandate a national cost savingsprogram to support the increasedQA costs.

Fisher: How does Fisher help themmeet their needs?

Mark: In two ways. First, we con-solidate a great deal of their pur-chases, which saves customerstime and money and simplifies theprocurement process. Secondly, wehave the infrastructure to supporttheir requirements—stock, avail-ability of products, diverse productoffering, and so forth.

To purchase any of the products mentioned in this article, please contact your Fisher Sales Representative or visit www. fishersci.com.

Remel Micro-ID Rapid Test Kits

Hygiena SpotCheck ATP Swabs

There are three major issues to look at when evaluating “rapid”methods—Appropriateness, HACCPPrograms and AOAC certification.All three need to be consideredequally when making your selection.

FoodTrack_Spring_2005.qxd 2/23/2005 2:32 PM Page 3

Introduction

It has been theorized that acrylamide is formed in rela-tively high concentrations whencarbohydrate-rich foods such as potatoes, rice, and cerealsare cooked at high heat.1,2 Thisseems to be particularly truewhen the products are fried.Raw or boiled starchy foods donot seem to form detectableamounts of acrylamide. Of theproducts tested, the highest lev-els of acrylamide were found inpotato chips and French fries,on the order of 400-1,200ppb.By comparison, the World HealthOrganization (WHO) has specified a maximum concentration of 0.5µg/L(0.5ppb) acrylamide in drinking water.

The FDA has published a draft methodfor the analysis of acrylamide in foods by LC/MS/MS.3 Since GC is a low-cost,efficient way to detect semivolatile com-pounds, and an analytical tool availablein many food laboratories, RestekCorporation investigated the feasibility of using GC to screen for this compoundin food samples. This article describes amethod developed by Restek for GCanalysis of acrylamide and sample pre-treatment using solid phase extraction.

Methodology and Results

Sample Preparation and Extraction

The samples were weighed to approxi-mately one gram and extracted in aformic acid solution. After cooling,the oil supernatant was filtered through a 0.45µm nylon syringe filter. ACarboPrepTM solid phase extraction (SPE)tube was used for sample cleanup informic acid and acetone as the washes.

Results

Specific chromatographic results of thesamples are shown on the applicationsnotes. The chromatographs show clearpeak resolution of the acrylamide.

Acrylamide Analysis—Restek Corp. offers an analysis method foracrylamide by gas chromatography

To purchase any of the prod-ucts mentioned in this article,please contact your Fisher SalesRepresentative or visit www. fishersci.com.

Remel PreparedCulture Media

Safeguard your results withmedia formulated specifically for industry, keyed to the appro-priate guidelines, including AOAC, BAM, or USDA. Thesemedia undergo stringent QA testing procedures, sometimesmore extensive to ensure theymeet referenced guidelines.

Contact your Fisher Sales Rep for information to request cus-tom media formulations andpackaging alternatives to meetyour laboratory's specificrequirements.

OVER 1,700 FORMULATIONS & FORMATS!OPTIMAL RECOVERY AND DIFFERENTIATIONOF MICROORGANISMS

Here’s an dedicatedion chromatographthat’s specific forphosphate determination.

Developed in collabo-ration with the softdrink industry, itrequires minimal sample preparationand has one-button operation and full PC control.

Fast and reliable soft drink testing

Metrohm Peak Soft Drink Ion Chromatograph

Uses integrated Mpak-certified IC reagents and Mcal-certified ICstandards. Add automation capability for the ultimate high samplethroughput and cost-effective analysis.

You can find this and other Metrohm Peak ion chromatographyproducts at www.fishersci.com. Search term: metrohm peak soft drink

You can find this and other Remel products at www.fishersci.com. Search term: Remel Prepared Culture Media

The amount of the acrylamide in theactual sample in question was below the detection limit for this method, so the sample was spiked with an acry-lamide standard for peak addition.That chromatogram is also shown in the application note.

Discussion

Gas chromatography offers a rapid,cost-effective approach to screening for acrylamide in food samples such as potato chips. The Stabilwax® capillarycolumn exhibits excellent selectivity foracrylamide, even when analyzing com-plex matrices, such as food samples.Detection limits on the order of0.01µg/mL (10ppb) in solution can be achieved. CarboPrep™ 200 samplepreparation cartridges provide excellentflow properties for rapid cleanup of samples, using either vacuum pressure or gravity. The chromatographic grade,graphitized carbon packing materialdemonstrates reproducible recovery.This strong adsorbent has a wide rangeof selectivity, resulting in high capacity,even for analytes not usually wellretained by reversed phase C18 adsor-bents. For additional sensitivity, ex-tracted acrylamide can be brominated,then quantified using an electron capture detector (ECD).4

The procedure described here is pre-sented in its entirety on Fisher’s Website located at www.fishersci.com/food.The document is located in our technicalinformation section as an applicationnote entitled “Acrylamide Analysis by Gas Chromatography” by RestekCorporation.

References:

1. Hileman, Bette, C&E News, July 2002.

2. Schildhouse, Jill, Food Product Design,July 2002.

3. http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/acrylami.html

4. US EPA Method 8032A

GC conditions

Column: Stabilwax- 15m, 0.53 ID,0.50µm film

Inj.: 1.0µL, 0.5 min. hold

Liner: 2mm splitless with wool

Injector temp.: 260°C

Carrier gas: helium, constant pressure

Linear velocity: 62cm/sec. @100°C

Oven temp.: 100°C (hold 0.5 min.)to 200°C @15°C/min.

Detector: FID @260°C

FoodTrack_Spring_2005.qxd 2/23/2005 2:32 PM Page 4

PRSRT STDU.S. POSTAGE

PAIDPittsburgh, PA

Permit No. 5450

BN0204052

Fisher Scientific Company L.L.C.2000 Park Lane DrivePittsburgh, PA 15275-1126

cal service representatives support thetime and resources spent by your labora-tory to prepare top quality culture media.Remel offers more than 500 formulationsand packaging options, including theconvenience of pre-weighed secure foilpouches, to meet your unique needs.

QA Organisms

Culti-Loops® set the standard for a con-venient, easy-to-use, quality source ofmicroorganisms. These highly stableorganisms are widely used for a varietyof quality control procedures and offerdistinct advantages over lyophilizedorganisms, including enhanced recoveryand reproducibility.

Culti-Loops are manufactured using a patented “gentle” gel preservationtechnique. The microorganisms areaffixed to a disposable inoculating loop.

Each loop is individually wrapped in afoil-sealed pouch containing a transfer-able label referencing the strain and lot number. Just warm the Culti-Loops toroom temperature and streak onto theappropriate agar surface!

Quanti-Cult® is the ideal assayed quality-control organism format delivering 10-100 CFUs per inoculum.

This unique system consists of a film of “gently” preserved microorganismsattached to the inside of a cap on a plas-tic vial. Quanti-Cult offers enhancedrecovery, reproducibility, and delivery of consistent organism counts, whichgreatly reduces laboratory time and laborcosts. Each inoculum is packaged in afoil-sealed pouch containing a transfer-able label referencing the strain and lotnumber. Certificates of Quality are pack-

aged with the product to meetregulatory requirements assur-ing product quality.

Diagnostic and Rapid Test Kits

Micro-ID® Systems are rapid,manual, enzymatic identifica-tion panels with easy-to-read,color-coded reactions. Micro-IDprovides genus- and species-level identification ofEnterobacteriaceae within four hours from primarygrowth medium. Micro-IDListeria provides screening ofListeria monocytogenes withinfour hours. Confirmation ofListeria is available within 24

hours. Micro-ID Systems are referencedas an AOAC Official Method.

The Microbact Rapid Pathogen ID kits are a range of self-contained manual biochemical-based tests for the identif-ication of pathogenic bacteria, and listerial and staphylococcal species.They are extremely easy to use and provide an accurate result in less than 24 hours. Rapid Pathogen test kits identify various food pathogens from a wide variety of food samples.

The tests come in two types, one forSalmonella and the other for Listeria,and are AOAC approved. The Dry Spottest kits also provide a clear, rapid meansof testing for food pathogens such as E. coli. They require no refrigeration andno liquid reagents.

Reagents, Stains, and QualityControl Slides

Reagents, Stains, and QC-Slides® are anintegral part of the Remel microbiologyportfolio. Remel Stains are also availablein a wide variety of formulations andpackaging options. In addition, QC-Slidesprovide the ideal solution for qualityassurance of your staining procedures.Reagent packaging options include bothsingle use and bulk packaging.

Atmospheric Generating Systems

Oxoid’s AnaeroGen® is a dry gas generating system designed to safelyand quickly create optimum conditionsfor the growth of anaerobic organismsmicroaerophilic organisms and CO2

dependant organisms.

Continued from coverRemel and Oxoid—Together a New Beginning

Fisher Scientific is proud to offer our customers the new Remel lineand will continue to provide qualityOxoid products under the Remelname. If you have questions regard-ing any of the products discussedhere, please contact your local Fisher Sales Representative or call 800-766-7000.

These products are also avail-able at www.fishersci.com.

FoodTrack_Spring_2005.qxd 2/23/2005 2:31 PM Page 1