Our food comes into contact with a lot of different materials and machines before it reaches our plates. The agriculture industry tries hard to ensure proper food safety by testing random representative samples of each batch of produce or food product before sending it out for distribution. They cannot send out the batch until they get results back (the test takes 72 hours) showing no contamination of common food-borne pathogens.
A new microbiology test from a tech company called Ocular does this in 24 hours, and can show potential contaminants in as little as 6 hours. The new test is expected to save the Irish dairy industry up to €200 million every year.
Here are some other relevant food microbiology posts from microBEnet:
Recent papers on microbiology of the built environment: Microbes in buildings and food
Taking Aim at Microbes on Farm Good Strategy for Food Safety | Food Safety News