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:

Webinar: OMG I have an out-of-spec micro sample, what should I do?

In this webinar, Dr. Douglas Marshall, Chief Scientific Officer of Eurofins Microbiology, discusses the best practices to help resolve product and environmental contamination events with a focus on effective root cause analysis and deployment of corrective actions as well as consideration of successful long-term preventive actions. Original Air Date May 24, 2023

Keywords: Webinar Microbiology Food Environmental DMarshall

Ask An Expert: The Effect of Preservation Aids on Pathogen Survival in Smoked Salmon

Besides flavor, salt is commonly used as a preservation ingredient to bind available water and help lower the water activity. It helps create conditions that are hard for pathogens to grow in. Learn more how the addition of salt in a smoked salmon product is not very straightforward with removing pathogen risk.

Keywords: Blog Microbiology Shelf Life DMarshall Meat Seafood

Zone One Testing: Do You Dare?

In this webinar, Doug Marshall, Chief Science Officer at Eurofins Microbiology discusses an approach to zone 1 testing that recommends non-direct-contact surfaces simultaneously for pathogens and indicators, then building a correlation between quantitative indicator count and Salmonella or Listeria prevalence. Dr. Marshall will share insights on how companies are employing this approach, including exploration of the various philosophical and scientific rationales for zone 1 pathogen testing.

Keywords: Webinar Environmental Microbiology Food Supplements Dmarshall