What does ATP stand for?
There are many ways to test food and production areas for the presence of various chemicals and microorganisms. Establishing satisfactory food hygiene is a multi-layered process, with certain tests forming a good bedrock to built on top of.
One such test is for ATP, which is essential for finding microbial traces in a variety of contexts. So, what does ATP stand for, and why and how do we test for it?
What does ATP stand for?
ATP is short for adenosine triphosphate. It consists of an adenine—one of the four nucleobases in DNA’s nucleic acid—attached to nitrogen and carbon atoms.
What is ATP?
ATP is a type of organic compound known as a coenzyme. It serves as a kind of energy capture molecule in the cells of living things. When food is broken down to create energy, ATP captures that energy in chemical form and can then transport it to fuel processes in the body such as muscle contraction.
ATP acts as a kind of ‘taxi’ for chemical energy, and doesn’t store it long-term in the body. ATP is present in all living things, and it is used to synthesise DNA. Accordingly, the presence of ATP logically means the presence of life—an extrapolation that can be highly useful when gauging whether food products have been contaminated by microbes.
What is ATP testing?
ATP testing is the process of testing for the presence of ATP. It’s typically used on surfaces rather than direct testing food products themselves, and it should be noted that the presence of any ATP whatsoever does not necessarily mean that a surface is too contaminated and therefore unsafe.
Being present in all living cells, ATP can be left just about any place that has been occupied by humans. It can be left on a surface by a person shedding skin or stray hair, and it would be almost impossible in certain environments for any and all traces of ATP to be eliminated.
As such, ATP testing doesn’t aim to establish the presence of ATP as a binary result so much as it aims to reveal the levels of ATP on a sample surface. High levels are something to seriously take note of, whereas low levels can be either normal or something to be removed with simple cleaning.
Of course, a single test in a single instance can only tell the users whether ATP is present in a specific place at any one time. Consistent ATP testing across crucial areas in a food production facility can help to unearth more fundamental hygiene problems and help shape quality assurance.
How do you test for ATP?
An ATP test uses a swab to collect any surface matter from your chosen area, which is then put into the ATP test itself. The tests utilise enzymes that react with any ATP present in the sample, producing a bioluminescent reaction that can be measured using a luminometer.
The luminometer measures the amount of light produced in relative light units (RLU). Compared against predetermined acceptable levels of RLU, the test can reveal how much ATP is present and whether current cleaning regimes are thorough enough.
In terms of the best times to test for ATP, that can vary depending on the nature of your facility and the processes involved in your production line. However, there are some general intervals wherein ATP testing is most beneficial.
For instance, testing after cleaning makes the most sense, as testing before will only demand another round of testing afterwards once the surface has been cleansed. ATP levels are irrelevant if the sample surface is going to be cleaned anyway.
Testing after cleaning but before sanitising presents the most useful scenario, in which you can gauge both the effectiveness of cleaning and necessity of using sanitiser. This also reduces any confusion in results, as a surface that still has residual sanitiser could interfere with the ATP test and give unreliable readouts.
Why is ATP testing important?
ATP testing doesn’t just test for dirt or grime, and it can verify levels of contamination that can’t be detected by the naked eye. Being an organic compound existing in living cells, the presence of ATP on an otherwise clean surface shows the presence of microbial lifeforms that, while invisible without microscopy, can still adversely affect any food products they manage to travel onto.
If your cleaning routine aims to simply make surfaces look clean and are visibly inspected for sanitation, then you need ATP testing to reveal the presence of microbes that won’t be detected otherwise.
ATP testing is also important in the event of a contamination or failure in quality assurance, especially if your business is one part of a longer production chain. It may be that you need to prove the efficacy of your quality assurance, and an ATP test can do just that. Low ATP results in your production areas can establish that your cleaning and sanitation is up to par, and so any issues must lie elsewhere.
How do I test for ATP?
Testing for ATP can be carried out using simple, compact equipment with quick results.
Surfaces must be swabbed in order to pick up any ATP present, which is where the Charm PocketSwab comes in. The swab is a prepared with luciferin which it deposits onto the surface when used, prompting the light-creating reaction that can then be measured in RLU.
The swab is then inserted into the Charm novaLUM II-X System, a convenient, multipurpose analyser that measures ATP in as little as five seconds and produces detailed yet digestible reports.
This makes rapid on-farm and inline testing easy to integrate, heightening your quality control and tightening your processes.
To learn more about food testing or hygiene and sanitation control, contact our team at Calibre Control today.