"partnering with the food industry to engage in pioneering research ..."

As part of the Center for Food Safety our mission includes "partnering with the food industry to engage in pioneering research for the maintenance and improvement of the safety of the world's food supply".

In the parasitology lab we focus on these particular areas:

• Detection of human and animal pathogenic parasites in food products and environmental samples. As part of these efforts, new detection methodologies and strategies are being developed, in particular, molecular and immune assays.
• The study of risk factors associated with parasitic food borne transmission. This motivates the development of safer produce and food products as well as testing, development, and evaluation of methodologies for parasite inactivation in food products.

"... scientists and students from a variety of world wide institutions .."

Due to ever increasing U.S. imports of fresh produce, many of which have been implicated in food borne outbreaks, it was necessary and logical to initiate a training program where scientists and students from a variety of world wide institutions are familiarized with these parasites. The scientific community as well as the general public needs to be made aware of the importance of parasitology as an integral part of food safety.

"Each year more and more products are being implicated in food borne outbreaks,"

Each year more and more products are being implicated in food borne outbreaks, thus producing infections that food microbiologists are not familiar with. Because of the differences in parasite life cycles and their varying resistance to common disinfectants, it is important to understand and research all aspects of their eradication and control. This will certainly aid in correcting the misdiagnoses of patients suffering from parasitic infections.