LAS VEGAS, Oct. 5, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- For the food industry, the September 19, 2016 Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) deadline to implement preventative measures to ensure safety of at-risk foods has spiked the demand for Agri-Neo's innovative Neo-Pure Food Safety System, the company announced today at SupplySide West 2016. Following Neo-Pure's full North American launch at the Institute of Food Technologists conference (IFT16) in July, the company has seen orders for its patented Neo-Pure Food Safety Systems, specifically designed for seeds and grains, grow significantly.
Neo-Pure solves the food safety dilemma facing seeds and grains by providing food safety as nature intended. Derived from plants, it harnesses the power of oxygen to control pathogens and unwanted microbes. The Neo-Pure liquid solution is applied in its dedicated Food Safety System to ensure total coverage of every seed and grain. Working with academic institutions, Neo-Pure has been validated to provide a 5-log reduction of pathogens, like Salmonella. The innovative Neo-Pure intervention keeps seeds and grains raw, organic and viable, while maintaining their organoleptic and nutritional properties.
"Seeds and grains present unique food safety challenges," said Agri-Neo President and COO Rob Wong. "Under FSMA, producers, processors and even retailers all need to demonstrate they are implementing proactive, preventive measures to address food safety concerns. With growing consumer demand for chia, flax, sunflower, quinoa and other seeds and grains in raw and ready-to-eat forms, it is no surprise that – absent a standard food safety intervention – these products have all been implicated in recent recalls because of microbial contamination. That's why we developed Neo-Pure – to address the specific food safety needs of seeds and grains, while maintaining the sensory and nutritional qualities consumers want. It's been gratifying to see the industry's response to our July North American launch – with Neo-Pure Food Safety Systems now in place or on order stretching from coast-to-coast."
From Seeds & Grains to Nuts & Wheat
Wong and the Agri-Neo team have also been expanding their portfolio of addressable foods that can be validated via a 5-log pathogen reduction to include nuts and wheat used for flour milling. In pilot tests, they've been able to replicate on nuts the same successful results they've seen on seeds and grains. The intervention, both at the molecular level and in terms of equipment, would be the same for nuts as for the foods that currently use Neo-Pure. And the Company is now working with a significant North American processor of cashews and macadamia nuts to confirm scalability, as well as working towards the commercial introduction of these new food categories with a number of partners.
Neo-Pure Food Segments & Customers
Agri-Neo has focused on serving the food safety needs of sprouters of seeds and grains, co-manufacturers/co-packers, and food brands. Some examples of initial food processor customers include Everspring Farms (www.everspringfarms.ca), Pacific Grain & Foods (www.pacificgrainandfoods.com), Hempco (www.hempcocanada.com) and Sungistix (www.sungistix.com), as well as the recent addition of Savita Naturals (www.savitanaturals.com), among others.
About Agri-Neo
Agri-Neo's mission is to help safely feed the world. The vision of the company and its founders is to set new food safety standards, starting with Neo-Pure for seeds and grains. Since 2009, Agri-Neo has invested significant resources from private investors and grants in research on food safety science performed by chemists, microbiologists and engineers. For more information, visit www.agri-neo.com. Follow us on Twitter and learn about us on LinkedIn.
SOURCE Agri-Neo