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Q Laboratories Blog

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Q Laboratories Named Finalist for Deal Maker Award

The Cincinnati Chapter of the Association for Corporate Growth (ACG Cincinnati) held their 19th Annual Deal Maker Awards on May 16th at the Hyatt Regency Cincinnati. At the event, Q Laboratories was recognized as one of the finalists for the annual Deal Maker award. The Deal Maker Awards are a tribute to the region’s outstanding companies

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Q Laboratories Wins Growth Award

Q Laboratories’ CEO Jeffrey Rowe and COO David Goins were on hand April 19 at historic Cincinnati Music Hall to accept the James A. Wuenker Growth Award presented by The Regional Economic Development Initiative (REDI) Cincinnati. The REDI Growth Award selection committee reviewed 86 projects submitted for the award, but only four were chosen for this prestigious

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Determining Antimicrobial Effectiveness

An antimicrobial or preservative is defined as a chemical agent that will kill or inhibit the growth of microorganisms. Common antimicrobials utilized in drug, OTC, cosmetic, and personal care products include parabens, alcohols, and quaternary ammonium compounds. Antimicrobial Effectiveness Testing (AET) also known as Preservative Efficacy Testing (PET) is microbial challenge methodology performed to assure

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Q Laboratories Partners with Bruker on New Official Methods Approvals

MALDI Biotyper® Receives AOAC International Approvals  Q Laboratories served as the lead laboratory for two studies gaining AOAC-Official Methods of Analysis (OMA) Status for the Bruker MALDI BioTyper® (MBT): Confirmation and Identification of Salmonella spp, Cronobacter spp. and Other Gram Negative Organisms by MBT Method (OMA#2017.09) and  Confirmation and Identification of Listeria monocytogenes, Listeria spp. and

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New USP Elemental Impurities Chapters Near Implementation

On January 1, 2018, USP/NF Chapter 231 on Heavy Metals will be shuttled and new chapters 232, 233 and 2232 on Elemental Impurities will be implemented. What does this mean? It means that the century-old qualitative colorimetric test for the presence of Heavy Metals has been replaced by considerably more sophisticated methods (ICP-OES and ICP-MS)

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Q Laboratories Opens Food Virus Lab

Q Laboratories has opened a state-of-the-art Food Virus Detection Laboratory at their Cincinnati, Ohio location. Utilizing Real-Time PCR technology, Q Laboratories can test food, water, environmental swabs, and food surface swabs for the presence of Norovirus (GI and GII) and Hepatitis A. The lab was purpose-built specifically for virus detection, involving a three-room dirty to

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Erin Crowley Named Fellow of Prestigious Scientific Organization

Q Laboratories’ Chief Scientific Officer Erin Crowley has been selected as a Fellow of AOAC® International. She will be presented with the honor during the Awards Ceremony on September 25th at the upcoming AOAC International Annual Meeting and Exposition in Atlanta. Erin is has served AOAC® International in many capacities and is currently Chair of

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Healthcare Facilities Pose Particular Risk of Legionella Infections

Responding to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report indicating Legionnaires’ Disease (LD) kills 25% of those who are infected while getting treatment or residing in a healthcare facility, the Department of Health & Human Services, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), on June 2, 2017, released a memorandum entitled, “Requirement to

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Q Laboratories Purchases Buildings

Q Laboratories has purchased two buildings (1920 and 1930 Radcliff Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio) as part of their ongoing capacity expansion project. The two buildings sit adjacent to the 30,000 sq. ft. laboratory building currently under construction, scheduled to be completed in Spring 2018. The newly-acquired buildings entail 25,000 sq. ft., and will eventually serve as

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When Do I Need a Method Verification?

In this age of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) it is increasingly important that the methods you (or your third-party lab) are using are validated by a recognized organization. Methods contained in the FDA Bacteriological Analytical Manual (FDA-BAM), the USDA-FSIS Microbiology Laboratory Guidebook, as well as methods approved by independent, non-governmental bodies such as

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Summertime Weather Turns Consumers’ Thoughts to Sunscreen

As the weather warms and the sun peeks out from behind the clouds, thoughts turn to outdoor activities and enjoying the pleasant weather. What follows is the inevitable need for sunscreen/sunblock products to help keep consumers and their families safe. This requires sunscreen product manufacturers to perform due diligence to assure the products they place

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Environmental Monitoring Design Utilizing the Zone Concept

With the implementation of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), as well as the recently released FDA Guidance on controlling Listeria monocytogenes in RTE foods, it is more important than ever to have a carefully designed, robust Environmental Monitoring (EM) program in your food manufacturing plant. Effective design of your EM program is essential to

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Q Laboratories, Inc. Now Offers 3-day Yeast and Mold Results

Q Laboratories, Inc. is excited to offer our clients faster turn-around times for their Yeast and Mold testing. Utilizing the Biomerieux TEMPO® YM Assay, results that used to take five days can now be turned around in three.  TEMPO® YM is an official AOAC Research Institute Performance Tested Method for numerous matrices including, cheese, yogurt,

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Q Laboratories, Inc. Gains International Recognition-Joins Elite Group of Expert Laboratories

Q Laboratories, Inc. (Cincinnati, Ohio) has been named an AFNOR Certified Expert Laboratory, thereby qualified to perform validation studies on instruments, test kits and materials for the food microbiology testing industry in France. Representatives of Q Laboratories, Inc. were in Paris, France the week of January 22nd to present before the Association Française de Normalisation

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Nontuberculous Mycobacteria (NTM) infections associated with heater-cooler devices

In the last few years, the FDA has focused on increasing awareness of Nontuberculous Mycobacteria (NTM) infections associated with heater-cooler devices and the subsequent risks to patients in health care facilities.  The FDA reports that there were 32 reports of infections associated with heater-cooler devices or bacterial heater-cooler device contamination between 2010 and 2015, but

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Reprocessing of Reusable Medical Devices

The FDA requires manufacturers of reusable medical devices to provide reprocessing instructions that ensure that the device can be used safely and for the purpose for which it is intended. Developing and validating these instructions can be a complex and highly specialized activity. Guidance on this process can be found in a document created by

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Low Moisture Foods Prove Problematic

While traditionally considered low risk, low moisture foods are susceptible to pathogen contamination as evidenced by recent cases of Salmonella contamination in dairy powder, paprika powder, black pepper, toasted oats cereal, peanut butter, and chia powder. Research has shown that while pathogens do not thrive in low moisture foods, they do survive very well in

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Microbial Identification Capabilities

Q Laboratories, Inc. has added another tool to our microbial identification capabilities by acquiring the Bruker MALDI Biotyper®. This technology allows for rapid, cost-effective, accurate identification of thousands of microorganisms (including yeasts and filamentous fungi) using state-of-the-art technology. It can be used for environmental, product and/or research and development applications. Classification and identification are based

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