J. David Legan, PhD
Director of Science
David earned his Ph.D. in Food Technology from the University of Reading in the UK by modeling the ecology of mixed microbial populations, and then moved to Campden BRI in a variety of microbiological food safety research and client service roles. During that time, he was project lead for the Bacillus component of the UK’s pathogen modeling program. He moved again to Nabisco Research in New Jersey where he ran the corporate microbiology lab and developed a program of preservation technology development and microbial modeling. After the Kraft Foods acquisition, he moved to Chicago to work on Food Safety and Preservation research, and through modeling and validation studies:
- Optimized Oscar Mayer’s use of lactate and diacetate and their naturally cultured alternatives as Listeria-control agents in Ready to Eat meats
- Specified process conditions central to Oscar Mayer’s commercial launch of High Pressure Pasteurization of naturally cured RTE meats
David had responsibility for the Kraft cultures R&D group, developed a partnership to explore microwave sterilization leading to several patents, and led a program that developed an internal proprietary natural antimicrobial commercialized in several Kraft products. Technologies from his group supported approximately $4 billion in annual sales.
After years as a microbiology "client", he is now back in the "provider" role as Director of Science at Eurofins Microbiology Laboratories, Inc., by way of the Covance Food Solutions group based in Madison, WI, which he joined in 2016. In this role, he ensures appropriate method validation, explores new testing technologies, and fields multiple complicated food microbiology questions.
Products that his team has evaluated or developed and launched include:
- The 3M MDS platform in the Madison microbiology laboratory
- Flow cytometry for enumeration of probiotics
- Strain-level confirmation of probiotic identification using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR)
- Next-generation sequencing using the Oxford Nanopore Technologies GridION sequencing platform for microbial identification and microbiome analysis
Below are resources from David:
There are many different types of PCR-based pathogen detection platforms in the industry. At Eurofins, we are often asked, how does our Eurofins BACGene compare to the most common alternative, Hygiena BAX? Michael Kaiser from our Eurofins Microbiology lab in Madison, WI discusses this topic in the short video. Eurofins publishes our Ask an Expert Series weekly on our social media platforms.
Formulating a new product can be exciting! But sometimes we are not sure of the effect this can have on growth of spoilage organisms during shelf life or risk of pathogenic bacteria. Martha Kimber from our Advance Microbiology Lab in Fresno, CA discusses this topic in this short video. Eurofins publishes our Ask an Expert Series weekly on our social media platforms.
Should you use a microbiological enumeration method that reports coliforms in colony forming units (CFU) per gram or most probable number (MPN) per gram? Which method is better? Abraham Gonzalez from our Southern California Eurofins Microbiology lab discusses this topic in this short video. Eurofins publishes our Ask an Expert Series weekly on our social media platforms.
Are ATP swabs adequate enough for monitoring environmental contamination in your facility? Our Chief Scientific Officer, Dr. Doug Marshall explains industry best practices and what might be the best approach. Eurofins publishes our Ask an Expert Series weekly on our social media platforms.
Should you be testing for Listeria species or Listeria monocytogenes? It is difficult question but one that Karissa Roadhouse from our Eurofins Microbiology lab in Louisville, KY helps us understand better in this short video. Eurofins publishes our Ask an Expert Series weekly on our social media platforms.
Eurofins scientists explain the difference between reporting your microbiology testing in colony forming units (CFU) or as Most Probable Number (MPN) per unit of measure. Are they interchangeable? Learn more!
You walk the field, you pick some product, and you drop it off at the lab for testing. Not long after, you hear back your sample is presumptive. Now what?
Are you struggling with positive environmental pathogen tests? This may indicate that your facility is suffering from microbial harborage sites. A harborage site is a growth niche in which bacteria or other microorganisms can reside and grow for months and possibly years.
What species of microorganisms are present in your dairy products? Learn why you need microbiome monitoring for your dairy products.
In this presentation, USP and Eurofins Microbiology provided an overview of USP microbiology methods tests for microbial contamination in dietary supplements, CBD/hemp products, and probiotics. The session included an in-depth discussion regarding the importance of suitability testing, and a comparison of USP methodology to AOAC/FDA BAM methodology. USP also provided an update on new USP chapters and shared insight on what is on the horizon for USP methods.
