The future of food and drink labs
How food and drink labs have adapted since COVID-19
With the start of the COVID-19 pandemic , we saw the mass stock-piling of food products like chicken , flour and eggs . This had a major knock-on effect on food and drinks labs , which are integral to test products from the production line and develop new food and drink items . Here , Aleiya Lonsdale , Head of Marketing at Lab Innovations , explains the impact COVID-19 has had on food and drink labs and the technologies and processes that it has inspired .
Health and safety came into the spotlight when the pandemic hit . The highly contagious nature of the virus meant that more rigorous hygiene and safety practices were required to limit transmission . In a position paper written in November 2020 , the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies ( SAGE ) argued that air cleaning systems in labs needed to be independently validated to ensure a COVID-secure environment .
One food and drink lab , Camden BRI , developed a new test procedure to validate air and surface cleaning systems in labs that had not been replicated anywhere else in the UK . The procedure would test the air and surface activity , assessing whether SARS-CoV-2 , the virus that causes the COVID-19 disease , was inactive or removed from those areas in the facility . Though this procedure had been created to stop the spread of the virus , it could be used in the future to test for a variety of viruses to ensure hygiene at the highest level in the air and on surfaces .
Staff shortages were also a challenge at the start of the pandemic . At its peak , some members of the Food and Drink Federation reported over 20 per cent of absences caused were by sickness and isolation . That , combined with social distancing in labs , added further pressure on food and drink manufacturing . Labs
58 FDPP - www . fdpp . co . uk had to invent new ways of carrying out important work safely in order to maintain the supply chain .
Isolation and lockdowns led to many scientists having to take their work home . Jan Hrušák , chair of the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures ( ESFRI ), has said ‘ We have seen huge , massive mobilisation of [ the ] capacities of research infastructure ’ and that he expects big labs to build more remote access schemes that allow researchers to send samples into the lab from home , especially with regard to non-critical projects . This new flexibility has become attractive for some labs with suggestions that this could lead to a rise in recruitment as more staff may be required to handle samples that have been sent to them by remote researchers .
Flexible working conditions also led to a rise in remote monitoring systems for integral pieces of equipment in food and drink labs like cold storage units . Monitoring and maintaining these units is essential to ensure product safety and meet regulatory compliance . Labs are now using new technologies like web-based remote monitoring systems to track conditions within cold storage units from
home , 24 / 7 . This data can be transmitted through the cloud , with notifications sent to devices from anywhere in the world .
This technology is not just limited to temperature monitoring . It can also track variables like humidity , carbon monoxide , water traces and power failure . By giving staff a way to monitor lab conditions , alerting them in the case of any irregularities , this technology can change the structure of the lab working force by allowing staff to work from home or focus on more mission-critical projects .
It is clear that COVID-19 has had a big impact on the world of work , particularly for industries like food and drink labs that have had to overcome challenges like lockdowns and social distancing . Through trial and error , new technology and processes have emerged , time will tell if these changes become permanent .
Many of these new developments will be showcased at Lab Innovations , the only exhibit in the UK for the laboratory industry , on November 3 and 4 , 2021 at the NEC in Birmingham . For more information on what ’ s happening at Lab Innovations , visit
www . lab-innovations . com