J. David Legan

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:

Heating Certificates: Why and How?

Does your sample contain any form of animal byproduct? Is your sample being shipped overseas to one of Eurofins’ partner labs for testing? If both these questions are true for your sample, you’ll need a heating certificate to get through customs. This handy infographic shows examples of samples and tests that may require a heating certificate.

Keywords: Infographic Dairy Nutrition

The Life Cycle of a Sample at Eurofins Laboratory

Have you ever wondered about the journey of your sample once you’ve sent it to Eurofins? This handy infographic shows the life cycle of a sample once we’ve received it in our laboratory, from labeling and identification through analysis and reporting.

Keywords: Infographic Nutritional Food

Shedding Light on Photostability

Does your food or supplement package contain translucent packaging? If so, your product and its ingredients could be susceptible to photochemical changes. This infographic illustrates the mechanics of photostability studies as well as the key attributes and product types impacted by light exposure.

Keywords: Infographic Shelf Life Food Beverages