Ondine Biomedical Inc (AIM:OBI) has said it will receive funding of up to US$735,000 to develop a novel photodisinfection prototype for use in Canada's meat packing industry.
The Canadian life sciences company has received the funding from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, a government body.
“Our innovative, rapid, and inexpensive approach to broad-spectrum disinfection has been proven both safe and effective for over a decade in Canadian hospitals, allowing tens of thousands of patients to reduce their risk of an antibiotic-resistant surgical site infection,” said Ondine president and chief technology officer Dr Nicolas Loebel in a statement.
“Recognizing the impact of antibiotic resistance in the meat packing industry, we realized that we could deploy the same technology in food safety - eliminating tough, food-borne pathogens which can undermine the health and safety of all Canadians," he added.
The company pointed out that photodisinfection kills all types of pathogens, such as viruses and bacteria, without creating resistance.
It noted that the Canadian meat processing industry has an “urgent need” for developing technologies to reduce the number of food-borne pathogens. The United Nations estimates that up to 30% of food is lost due to degradation.
Ondine said that removing pathogens will help protect a US$9.4bn industry and enhance the lives and welfare of consumers, protecting them from illness.
Pathogens are easily spread in meat packing facilities, with photodisinfection highly effective in killing the microbes.