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EBI Food Safety Commercializes Bacteriophage Technology

Posted on: Tuesday, 2 May 2006, 09:00 CDT

THE HAGUE, The Netherlands, May 2 /PRNewswire/ -- In the fight against bacteria, EBI Food Safety is taking a quantum leap, with the establishment of its Phage Technology Center in The Netherlands. The facility will harbour the Western World's first facility for industrial scale production of bacteriophages and will serve as the company's Research & Development headquarters. In July the first Listex(TM)P100 batches against contamination of Listeria Monocytogenes will be shipped to customers in the EU and US.

Listeria monocytogenes causes listeriosis, a foodborne disease which is recognized as an important health problem in the EU and US. Outbreaks of listeriosis lead to the death of about 25 per cent of those infected, ranking it as the highest fatality rate of all foodborne diseases. During pregnancy, listeriosis often causes miscarriage or stillbirth. The discovery of Listeria monocytogenes, mainly in raw and ready-to-eat meat, poultry, seafood and dairy products, has prompted numerous product recalls, which have led to large financial losses for the food industry and numerous health scares.

Listeria is a remarkably tough organism that has a high resistance to salt, nitrite, dry conditions and acidity. But in particular it is the micro organism's ability to multiply under refrigerated conditions, which causes major concerns for food processors. The organism can spread to the blood stream and central nervous system and can invade the placenta.

It has been known since 1920 that phages (Greek for bacteria-eaters) kill bacteria. The potential of phages to treat infections and kill foodborne bacteria has been recognized for decades, but EBI Food Safety is the first to have a commercial product on the market. What makes bacteriophages particularly suitable for the fight against bacteria is the fact that they have no impact on plant or animal cells, and are ubiquitous and plentiful in nature, i.e. in water, soil, and food products.

"The establishment of our Phage Technology Center is a milestone in the history of phage technology. This will reinforce EBI Food Safety's position as product leader in the field of applied bacteriophage technology and marks a breakthrough in the fight against dangerous bacteria", says EBI Food Safety's CEO Mark Offerhaus.

EBI Food Safety's facilities in Wageningen are at the heart of the Food Valley (http://www.foodvalley.nl/) which has become known as an international center for research and innovation for the Food industry. EBI Food Safety already collaborates with a number of companies and institutes in the area for years.

"We are truly excited that EBI Food Safety has chosen to establish its Phages Technology Center here in Wageningen. We are convinced the company will benefit from the large network of expertise and availability of qualified and skilled labour" says Wageningen Food Valley's board member Theo Meijer.

About EBI Food Safety

EBI Food Safety is a privately held Life Sciences company, focused on the development and commercialization of new anti-bacterial agents, based on its bacteriophage technology. The company's scientific network includes collaborations with universities and research centers in The Netherlands, Switzerland, Spain, Belgium and Italy. The company is viewed as product leader in the field of applied bacteriophage technology for food applications.

EBI FOOD SAFETY (http://www.ebifoodsafety.com/)

EBI Food Safety B.V.

CONTACT: Corporate Offices. Johan van Oldenbarneveltlaan 9, 2582 NE DenHaag, The Netherlands, Tel: +31-70-358-5008, Fax: +31-70-358-5044,info@ebifoodsafety.com; Phage Technology Center, Nieuwe Kanaal 7P, 6709 PAWageningen, The Netherlands, Contacts: Mr. Mark L. Offerhaus, Chief ExecutiveOfficer, Tel: +31-(0)654-913-176, m.offerhaus@ebifoodsafety.com; Ir. MartinWarmerdam, Director Marketing & Sales, Tel: +31-(0)62-0958-257,m.warmerdam@ebifoodsafety.com

Source: PRNewswire

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