WASHINGTON — Recently, the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service issued a No Objection Letter (NOL) for Innodal’s INNEO, accepting it as a processing aid to control Listeria monocytogenes in red meat and poultry products.
Innodal is a Canadian company that develops natural food safety solutions based on antimicrobial compounds derived from probiotic strains.
This determination allows U.S. meat and poultry processors to use INNEO as a surface treatment and directly within the food matrix of comminuted products, the company said in a statement. FSIS has no objections to processors using the product for its intended purpose, an antimicrobial intervention when applied on product surfaces or mixed into ready-to-eat formulations, allowing full regulatory compliance within FSIS-regulated establishments.
“This No Objection Letter from USDA-FSIS is a major milestone for INNEO,” Laurent Dallaire, Innodal CEO and co-founder, said. “It confirms that processors can confidently use our bacteria-based technology not only on product surfaces but also directly within comminuted meat and poultry products. Combined with FDA GRAS status, this decision provides clear regulatory confidence and unlocks meaningful opportunities to strengthen Listeria control across the U.S. meat and poultry industry.”
INNEO is a natural antimicrobial processing aid based on a bacteriocin, a class of peptides recognized for their targeted activity against Listeria monocytogenes, Innodal explained. Prior to receiving this FSIS NOL, INNEO earned “Generally Recognized as Safe” status from the FDA. The combination of these two distinctions establishes the final regulatory clarity needed for distribution across red meat and poultry applications.
Already commercialized in Canada, INNEO offers U.S. processors a clean-label alternative to conventional antimicrobials, Innodal added. Trials throughout the industry have shown strong effectiveness against Listeria, while also maintaining product quality features like taste, texture, and appearance.
One of the perks of INNEO is that it provides processors with more flexibility to create strong Listeria control strategies modified to their specific processes. Because it is recognized as a processing aid, INNEO can be used without ingredient labeling changes, simplifying operations and supporting recall-prevention efforts, Innodal added.
For more information about Innodal and INNEO, visit their website at https://innodal.com/ or contact them at info@innodal.com.
