April 2023 - 26

FOOD SAFETY
Ionized gas used for food safety
BY CHRIS KOGER
MANAGING EDITOR
S
tart-up company, NanoGuard Technologies, is in the
early phases of designing a technology that uses air
and electricity to kill molds and pathogens on fruits,
vegetables and other food, with a goal of replacing chemical
sanitizers throughout the food chain.
NanoGuard Technologies uses High Voltage Atmospheric
Cold Plasma (HVACP) to reduce postharvest microbial
activity by more than 99%, and cut toxins in half. The
process basically pasteurizes raw food without heat in a
process NanoGuard calls airilization, which doesn't affect
quality, taste or texture.
The company's guiding principle is " If it isn't safe, it
isn't food, " an adage borrowed from the United Nations'
Food and Agriculture Organization, said Larry Clarke,
NanoGuard's CEO.
" Basically, we are moving gasses, air, through a plasma
field, creating ionized particles, " Clarke said. " These ionized
particles are then blown across the product that needs to
be decontaminated. "
The process kills mold, fungi, viruses and mycotoxins,
which are toxic compounds produced by some fungi that
threaten human, pet and livestock food. NanoGuard has
tested the process on fruits and vegetables, including fresh
potatoes in storage to reduce rot, and cut potatoes to be
sold fresh, but the company is currently focusing on the
grain and flour industry.
Cargill conducted more than 300,000 tests on animal
feed in 2022, according to its World Mycotoxin Report.
Of those, 72% were
contaminated by mycotoxins,
half of which were above
Cargill's " performance risk
threshold, " meaning they
reduced the effectiveness of
the animal feed.
Clarke, a retired Bunge
executive, joined NanoGuard
after Bunge became a major
investor in the company.
Startup investors
Blueberry Plants
Directly From the Grower
value joint development
agreements between the
startups and business
partners, and Clarke said
NanoGuard has had more
than 20 such relationships.
" Finding people who want
NanoGuard Technologies'
newest laboratory
prototype generates
plasma between three
pairs of electrodes. Photos:
NanoGuard Technologies
this to work is easy, " he said. " The work we're doing right
now is not as focused on the fruit and vegetable world, but
we have done work there and we see the capabilities. "
That includes treating tomato seeds, and an interest in
indoor vertical farms.
HVACP in the supply chain
Clarke described airilzation as an " and " technology,
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not an " or " technology, meaning it's not limited in use to a
specific part of the supply chain, such as during packing,
or at the distribution center or even at the retail level.
He said he believes the supply chain is " fractured, " with
stakeholders focused on just their part of the chain.
" As a warehouseman, I am going to protect my
warehouse profitability and effectiveness and efficiency,
and as a shipper, I would protect mine, " he said. " But as you
move all across the supply chain, there are just a very few
companies - Driscolls would be one of them - that sees
the whole supply chain and measures the impact of things
like food safety across the supply chain. "
The ionized gas used in the NanoGuard process has
a short half-life, Clarke said, so the equipment needed
to produce it must be on-site. The company has been
focused on optimizing the process, to ensure it removes
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April 2023

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