Aquapharm seals agreement with food research company

Marine biotechnology company Aquapharm Biodiscovery has signed a research agreement with Leatherhead Food Research under which the two partners will work together to identify compounds and extracts from Aquapharm’s collection of marine micro-organisms that are relevant to the food industry.

Aquapharm will apply its suite of proprietary screening technologies and fermentation know-how to generate extracts for screening. Leatherhead Food Research, drawing on its scientific expertise and track record on the identification, evaluation and application of alternative preservatives for food and other applications, will then undertake the screening of these short-listed extracts from Aquapharm’s collection against a range of different micro organisms, bacteria and fungi.

Aquapharm and Leatherhead Food Research will offer the naturally-derived antimicrobial compounds found through this screening effort to the food and beverage industry and seek an appropriate partner, or partners, to support further development and commercialisation.

Aquapharm says the collaboration represents a major step forward in realising the potential of its marine assets and expertise in the food and beverage sector. This builds on its established deals to develop novel bio-active ingredients for the personal care industry and to isolate and identify active pharmaceutical ingredients.

“Consumer demand for additive-free foods is a key research driver in the area of food preservatives. Adding to Leatherhead’s current research portfolio on natural alternatives to chemical preservatives, this collaboration aims at the effective exploitation of Aquapharm’s unique source of biodiverse marine micro-organisms,” said Evangelia Komitopoulou, Head of Food Safety at Leatherhead Food Research.

Initial results from this research agreement are expected during early 2011.