The challenge of merging food safety diagnostic needs with quantitative PCR platforms

The field of food microbiology and safety has experienced an exciting time in the last 10 years. New methods have been introduced to assess safety of foods by targeting pathogenic microorganisms without the need for cultivation. The most prominent innovation in this field is represented by the Polymerase Chain Reaction. From the 1990s, PCR has seen a tremendous increase in its applications, and from the conventional, qualitative format, nowadays it became quantitative. In this paper we describe its principles and applications in food safety and we critically evaluate its benefits as well as aspects requiring further improvement.