Objective Foodborne pathogens in processed ready-to-eat products pose a serious threat to consumers with compromised immune system. Sensitive, specific and rapid detection of such pathogens is thus essential at production level to prevent their entrance into the human food chain. Conventional microbiological detection methods simply take too long (2 to 7 days) to detect and identify pathogens in food and no real time data is available. Other traditional testing methods, such as ELISA, are also relatively costly and time-consuming. Traditional methods require the taking of a product sample, its posterior culturing until sufficient microorganisms have been generated to enable ready detection on culture plates. While a number of methods such as PCR may provide faster detection (6-12 hours) they involve complex procedures and highly specialised trained personnel. In today's modern food supply chain, products enter and leave the market within two to three days. Slow traditional analytical methods are clearly deficient as they enable contaminated meat products to reach the market, resulting in human disease and even mortality. Moreover, most analyses need to be carried out in large analytical laboratories as the required instrumentation is expensive and requires highly qualified staff. Only very large farms and slaughterhouses can thus afford to perform regular, on-site, microbiological checks. There is a clear need for a rapid, handheld, easy to use and cost effective microbiological analyser which is tailored and well suited to the needs of the meat industry to enable its use on the processing floor thus allowing rapid process control testing. A biosensor based approach presents a promising and sensitive alternative tool for the detection of low numbers of cells in a question of minutes (with no need for enrichment steps) as opposed to days. Electrochemical methods would also enable the application of more user friendly and cheaper instrumentation. Fields of science engineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringelectronic engineeringsensorsbiosensorssocial sciencessociologydemographymortalitymedical and health sciencesbasic medicineimmunologyengineering and technologymaterials engineeringnatural sciencesbiological sciencesmicrobiology Programme(s) FP6-SME - Horizontal research activities involving SMEs: Specific activities covering wider field of research under the Focusing and Integrating Community Research programme 2002-2006. Topic(s) SME-1 - Co-operative Research (all areas of science and technology) Call for proposal FP6-2003-SME-1 See other projects for this call Funding Scheme Data not available Coordinator CENTRE DE RECERCA I INVESTIGACIO DE CATALUNYA S.A. Address C/ margallo 12 Barcelona Spain See on map EU contribution € 0,00 Participants (14) Sort alphabetically Sort by EU Contribution Expand all Collapse all APPLIED RESEARCH USING OMIC SCIENCES S L Spain EU contribution € 0,00 Address Travessera de gracia 108 entl Barcelona See on map ATLANGENE APPLICATIONS S.A.S France EU contribution € 0,00 Address 9, rue du chêne lassé b.p. 273 Saint herblain See on map BIO SENSOR TECHNOLOGIE GMBH Germany EU contribution € 0,00 Address Buchholzer strasse 61 Berlin See on map BVT TECHNOLOGIES A.S Czechia EU contribution € 0,00 Address Brnenska 1257 Kurim See on map Links Website Opens in new window CARTON GROUP LTD Ireland EU contribution € 0,00 Address Bluebell industrial estate Dublin See on map CONSEJO SUPERIOR DE INVESTIGACIONES CIENTIFICAS Spain EU contribution € 0,00 Address Calle serrano 117 Madrid See on map Links Website Opens in new window FELTALALOI ES KUTATO KOZPONT SZOLGALTATO KFT Hungary EU contribution € 0,00 Address Skalonka köz 28 Budapest See on map INVESTIGACIONES BIOQUIMICAS S.L Spain EU contribution € 0,00 Address Paseo del remei 28.sta maria de palau tordera (barcelona) Sta maria de palau tordera See on map Links Website Opens in new window JCB ELECTRONICA S L Spain EU contribution € 0,00 Address Travessera de gracia 108, entl Barcelona See on map PALM INSTRUMENTS BV Netherlands EU contribution € 0,00 Address Ruitercamp 119 Houten See on map RICHARD WOODALL LTD United Kingdom EU contribution € 0,00 Address Lane end Waberthwaite, cumbria See on map Links Website Opens in new window SELECCION BATALLE, S.A Spain EU contribution € 0,00 Address Avda. dels segadors s/n Riudarenes (girona) See on map Links Website Opens in new window UNIVERSITY COLLEGE DUBLIN Ireland EU contribution € 0,00 Address Belfield Dublin See on map W. NIXON & SONS LTD United Kingdom EU contribution € 0,00 Address Outwood farm bolshaw road Cheshire See on map