According to a new market report from Strategic Consulting, Inc. (SCI), food companies around the world increasingly rely on third-party contract testing laboratories for their food quality and safety testing. In 2013, worldwide revenue for food contract testing labs will exceed $3 billion, with a compound annual growth rate of 9.4%. SCI's Food Contract Lab Report (FCLR) is the first report to examine this market segment in detail, and reviews test volumes, revenues and emerging trends in quality and safety testing conducted by third party laboratories for food companies around the world.
With the volume of food testing conducted at contract labs growing at a faster rate than the food testing market as a whole, this trend has implications for both food companies and diagnostic test manufacturers. The shift to contract testing labs for their food quality and safety testing means that food companies are increasingly dependent on third party laboratories outside their food plants for the integrity of their quality and safety programs. It also has the potential to significantly impact the companies that manufacture food diagnostic tests and instruments, as a greater portion of their business is determined by the performance requirements of contract testing laboratories.
The trend toward third-party testing has peaked recently in response to the growing complexity, cost and volume of testing required by food producers and retailers. As food companies continue to realize that they can get timely and accurate test results from outside laboratories that focused on food quality and safety testing, the trend will accelerate.
In addition, food quality standards such as HACCP and new regulations due to the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) have increased the process, documentation and accreditation requirements for food quality and safety programs and laboratories. To read more, click HERE.
