Canadians form research consortium for bioactive paper

Some of the leading trends in food safety and biodefense these days are papers, cloths, gels, and sprays that can either rapidly disinfect or even prevent the growth of E. coli and other pathogens. The latest example of this comes from our Canadian friends up north: researchers from ten of that nation’s universities, in coordination with nine industry partners and federal and provincial government agencies, have formed a research consortium to develop low-cost and easy-to-use paper-based products with biologically active chemicals that can protect the public against water- and food-borne disease.

Known as the SENTINEL Bioactive Paper Network, the initiative leverages advances in biochemistry with current paper-production processes — all leading, hopefully, to a bioactive ‘ink’ that would allow biologically active chemicals to be printed, coated or impregnated onto or into paper. “What bioactive paper will offer are immediacy, portability and low-cost in detecting and repelling or deactivating harmful pathogens,” said inventor and McMaster University Professor Robert Pelton. Potential products that could be manufactured using bioactive paper include: food packaging that signals the presence of E. coli and salmonella; hospital masks that detect and deactivate harmful air-borne viruses such as SARS; dip-sticks that can detect and purify unsafe drinking water; and paper strips that can check for banned pesticides on produce.