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Charm Sciences Celebrates 38 Years of Food Safety Innovation
Every time you drink milk, or eat dairy products such as yogurt or cheese, there is a 97% chance that it has been pretested by a rapid Charm test manufactured by Charm Sciences Inc. in Lawrence, Massachusetts.
Prior to the invention of the first Charm tests, dairy testing was slow. It could take days for results to come back showing that no antibiotics used to treat cows had made their way into milk. This delay in processing, or dumping of processed milk, was a significant expenditure to dairies and processors alike. However, in 1978, with the launch of Charm Sciences, testing times were reduced from days to 15 minutes allowing safe and healthy dairy products to fill store shelves efficiently and cost effectively.
The Charm 1 test, developed 38 years ago, was the first rapid food safety test and led to an entirely new food safety industry to prevent contamination in the food supply. Today, Charm Sciences remains the leading food safety test supplier to food manufacturers world-wide, with 75 % of all dairy products globally using a Charm test for antibiotics in milk, keeping them in compliance with their country’s regulations.
Additional Charm rapid and regulatory approved tests are also accepted in a wide range of processed foods. Dr. Stanley Charm, President of Charm Sciences and the inventor of the first Charm test, continues to ensure that Charm supplies the food industry with tests that prevent food contamination and protect the health of both humans and animals.
Charm Sciences has three manufacturing locations, all located in Massachusetts.
The Lawrence facillity houses the company’s R & D headquarters, as well as Quality Control and production of reagents. Equipment is also manufactured in Lawrence.
A second factory in North Andover is dedicated to the production of a 5 second sanitation test that is used to ensure that food manufacturing production facilities throughout the world are clean and safe. This product also has applications in hospitals, chemical manufacturing plants, as well as directly on the farm.
The third factory which is located in Andover, serves a dual purpose. It is the manufacturing headquarters of the new Peel Plate bacteria test that has applications in all food processing facilities. The 60,000 square foot facility also serves as the company’s Technology Center. Food manufacturers visit Charm to be trained on all aspects of food safety. Visitors from around the world, including China, Turkey, Japan, Brazil, Canada, etc. are invited for training on the specific food safety tests required by their country.
All Charm products are invented, quality controlled and manufactured at one of Charm’s facilities. This includes the reagents and equipment needed with the tests, as well as the production equipment to make the products. This vertical integration ensures the accuracy and repeatability of the products manufactured.
Charm Sciences has additional offices in The Netherlands and Thailand. Distributors in over 90 countries are trained to transfer the technology across the globe.
About Charm Sciences
Established in 1978 in Greater Boston, Charm Sciences helps protect consumers, manufacturers, and global brands from a variety of issues through the development of food safety, water quality, and environmental diagnostics tests and equipment. Selling directly and through its network of distributors, Charm’s products serve the dairy, feed and grain, food and beverage, water, healthcare, environmental, and industrial markets in more than 100 countries around the globe. http://charmdev-websitetestlink.charm.com