MODESTO, CALIF. – Enviro Tech Chemical Services Inc., Modesto, Calif., and Birko Corporation, Henderson, Colo., have agreed on a Letter of Intent for Birko to become a Master Distributor for HB2, a new, patent-pending bromine chemistry from Enviro Tech.

HB2 has shown in controlled lab tests to reduce E. coli O157:H7 and other pathogens by up to 99.959% in a one-minute period and up to 99.999% over five minutes, the company said.

Enviro Tech was recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration to use HB2 on red meat and poultry. HB2 will soon be approved for use in federally inspected meat plants.

“In the field of bromine-based antimicrobials, this product is unsurpassed in terms of efficacy, cost effectiveness, ease of use, and worker safety,” said Jonathan Howarth, Ph.D, and vice president of technology at Enviro Tech.

“HB2 is exactly what our customers have been telling us they are looking for — a low-price, high-efficacy, simple-to-mix-and-use type of antimicrobial intervention,” added Mark Swanson, Birko’s chief executive. “Birko is always looking for ways to improve the efficacy and quality of the products we bring to our meat processing customers. We’ve found that again in HB2 from Enviro Tech. Over the years, Birko has had a great relationship with Enviro Tech, distributing products such as their P.A.A. under our own label.”

HB2 competes quite favorably with chlorine, peracetic acid (P.A.A.) and acidified sodium chlorite (A.S.C.), both in cost and in its technical effect on E. coli O157:H7 and other problem pathogens such as Listeria, Salmonella and Campylobacter, according to a news release.

In using HB2, pathogen reduction is quick enough to use it in portion-cut or grind operations, where whole-muscle meat or trimmings can move rapidly through the process, the company said. HB2 is also applicable for antimicrobial spray units because it offers a quick-kill of pathogens, is non-corrosive and leaves no odor or flavor profile products. HB2 also helps further processors comply with their E. coli intervention requirement under F.S.I.S. Notice 50-09.

For more information, call: (800) 525-0476, or e-mail: info@birkocorp.com.