Thermo Fisher responds to E.coli crisis

Thermo Fisher Scientific says it has responded to the E.coli O104 crisis in Europe by increasing production and distribution of its Brilliance ESBL Agar plate, a chromogenic screening plate for the detection of Extended Spectrum Beta-Lactamase-producing (ESBL) organisms, such as the outbreak strain, within 24 hours.

“With worldwide concern over E.coli O104, food microbiologists need to ensure that they can detect enterohaemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC) in foods, water and food processing environments in order to prevent, investigate or combat outbreaks of EHEC-related food poisoning,” says a spokesman for the firm. “The current outbreak highlights the importance of rapid and reliable identification of EHEC.”