Emiline coordinates some of Fera’s contingency response programmes with the teams comprising staff from across the organisation. These services are for different government customers and require maintenance of the skills, licences and specialist facilities required. A key focus of Emiline’s Specialist Microbiological Services Team,  is the development of new Microbiological Proficiency Test (PT) Materials to enhance the current FAPAS offer. These Food and Water PT Schemes cover key pathogens, spoilage and indicator organisms. As new threats emerge, Fera aim to be in a position to provide robust and real PTs, many of which are food based matrices. The team have expertise in traditional ISO methods as well as new rapid technologies such as LAMP and implement these for bespoke commercial offers.

Recent projects Emiline has been involved in have been focussed on the Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR). The first of these identified and quantified antimicrobial resistant organisms in retail pork products from different quality assurance schemes. Following the success of this work, a second study followed quickly which  explored the presence of AMR organisms and genes in environmental samples from around livestock farms. This work incorporated expertise from across Fera with the phenotypic element, genotypic screening and residues analysis.

New areas of interest are linked with the microbiological safety of novel food products from insect derived protein, to plant based meat and the safety screening of biopesticides.