On Nov. 4, 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), in collaboration with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), announced the successful EPA registration for the first antimicrobial product using the revised efficacy protocol for pre-harvest agricultural water.

This registration to Biosafe Systems in East Hartford, CT, was a landmark achievement in collective industry efforts to improve food safety, and marked the first ever approval of a treatment for use against foodborne pathogens, such as Salmonella and E. coli, in the agricultural water used to grow produce.

While farmers are not required to treat their agricultural water, treatment can serve as one option that can be used to help protect the safety of produce. The FDA and EPA encourage future registrations using this protocol for registering new treatment products or amending current labels for combating foodborne pathogens in pre-harvest agricultural water.