Pathotrak, a company that has pioneered a technology that expedites laboratory detection of foodborne pathogens, is announcing that Frank Yiannas, a food safety expert and former deputy commissioner at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, has been named to its board of directors.

Yiannas has long championed using technology to fight foodborne illness. Most recently, he was the deputy commissioner for food policy and response at the FDA. He was instrumental in advancing implementation of the Food Safety Modernization Act and was the driving force behind the agency’s New Era of Smarter Food Safety initiative. Before the FDA, Yiannas held food safety leadership roles with Walmart and the Walt Disney Co. After leaving FDA, Yiannas established Smarter FY Solutions to advise on food safety and supply chain issues.

“We asked Frank to join us because he is one of those rare individuals who has experience on both sides of the fence. He has been at the center of food safety advances in industry and in the government. But most importantly, he is truly passionate about food safety,” said Javier Atencia, founder and CEO of Pathotrak.

Yiannas called Pathotrak’s work an example of how technology can take food safety to a new level. “We must leverage the best that science has to offer and innovate to move past the challenges we’ve faced for so long. Being able to identify a foodborne pathogen within hours, rather than days, is a game changer, an example of smarter food safety, and I’m excited about being part of that,” Yiannas said.

Pathotrak has developed a technology called Next Generation Enrichment that is available to food safety testing laboratories and food producers. It is designed to shorten a lab’s sample preparation step known as enrichment, when the food is incubated for at least 22 hours to allow an increase in bacteria levels. Pathotrak’s technology greatly reduces that time, promising test results within an eight-hour lab shift.

The goals are to speed investigations into foodborne illness outbreaks, limit recalls and reduce food waste. In 2022, Pathotrak’s technology was certified by the AOAC Research Institute as the first to deliver pathogen detection for leafy greens in less than an eight-hour shift. In 2024, Pathotrak received AOAC accreditation for rapid testing in beef and continues to develop game-changing solutions in other food categories.

Source: Pathotrak