Foodborne diseases kill thousands of Americans each year. Tracing food with genetically engineered spores could help. – The Counter

Bhuyan said that his company has plans to win over both farmers and consumers, and that many industries have already signed on to use the technology.

The traction we have gained spans multiple countries and supply chains ranging from meat, dairy, cannabis, coffee, leafy greens, and a range of non-organic items, he said. Its unclear which companies Aanika is currently working with, as only a handful of partnershipsincluding a collaboration with the diamond company, De Beers Grouphave been disclosed publicly.

A normal food recall can affect a dozen farms, some of which were not actually responsible for the outbreak. Instead of recalling produce from all those growers, Aanikas spores could instead be used to pinpoint the outbreaks source, which would have the additional benefit of reducing the number of claims that an insurance company would have to pay out. This year, Aanika will work directly with agricultural insurers, offering them up to $10 million in guarantees, an incentive to protect insurers against loss in case claims submitted to them by farmers are not reduced as a result of using Aanikas spores. The move was made public in a blog post that the company posted to Medium in December, and it could offer enough of a financial incentive to get more large-scale traction with farmers.

As for consumer concerns, Bhuyan said that, even if spores did end up on your dinner plate, the average person poops out thousands of bacterial spores every daya claim supported by a recent studyso we dont think this will be a problem.

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Foodborne diseases kill thousands of Americans each year. Tracing food with genetically engineered spores could help. - The Counter