Safety First

Worried about contaminated food, drugs, or vaccines? Thanks to these unsung heroes, you shouldn't be.

Making the World a Safer Place, One Drop or Bite at a Time

The world is a weird and wonderful place that’s full of surprises, but these surprises aren’t always positive and can catch us off guard: bacteria, pollutants, and contaminants invisible to the naked eye lurk everywhere, even in the cleanest of environments, and can be hard to spot and even harder to get rid of. Thankfully, help is at hand. Life-science experts around the globe are working hard to ensure the safety of all those things that keep us happy, healthy, and vital – whether it’s the food we eat, the medicine we take, or the cosmetics we use. The ultimate goal is an enhanced quality of life, for everyone.  

A Challenging Task

No matter what you do or where you go, I’ll be there for you; all I need is the right fuel and maintenance. But, while I love life and nature, there are plenty of things in the earth, air, and water that can throw me off balance: germs, pollutants, and contaminants that can spoil meals, affect crops, or taint medical treatments.  

At the same time, a growing global population means an increased need for industrial-scale food and drug production, because everyone deserves a fair chance in life. People around the world should be able to trust the food they eat, the water they drink, the vaccines that protect them from disease, and the therapies that lend a helping hand when things don’t quite go according to plan.

Early breakthroughs in hygiene and safety, like pasteurization and sterilization, have already paved the way for safer consumption, but until recently, research and production methods have often been time-consuming or lacked the right quality standards. Thankfully, experts are working hard to change this and help support me in my mission.

 Filters used to purify liquids, food, drinks and many other products  Filters used to purify liquids, food, drinks and many other products

Filtering for Ambitious Approaches

Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany has been setting standards in this field since 1851, when Emanuel Merck personally guaranteed the quality of his products. And, thanks to the dedicated work of the company’s Life Science division, I’ve never been in better shape. Often thinking outside the box (and the confines of technology), they’ve concentrated their efforts on identifying and eliminating pathogens, impurities, and other contaminants within production and manufacturing environments for more than half a century.

Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany employees have even been exploring new research methods like Design Thinking to develop powerful, durable, yet easy-to-use purification systems and analysis products – and for good reason too: controlling germs is a daily challenge for manufacturers of food, beverages, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals. Lab water, especially, needs to be ultrapure to ensure reliable results, as errors can jeopardize outcomes all the way from research, through to testing, production, and distribution.

 A man relaxing on a hammock, examining his drink making sure there's no unwanted additives in it.  A man relaxing on a hammock, examining his drink making sure there's no unwanted additives in it.

Better Standards for Everyone

I think it’s high time to honor the unsung heroes that do so much work behind the scenes. After all, safety in life is not guaranteed and is something we can sometimes take for granted. But thanks to affordable, efficient, and ultraprecise filtration, testing, and contamination detectors, producers can now eliminate impurities, pesticides, viruses, or chemical residues long before they reach our table or medicine cabinet.

So how do these developments influence everyday practice? Well, contamination-free vaccines have already made a major impact: during the global swine-flu outbreak in 2009, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany worked closely with leading flu-vaccine manufacturers to develop a rapid, microbiological sterility testing method, which enabled a fast release of vaccine doses to the market. This fast-track response helped reduce the severity of the swine-flu pandemic and has since been adopted by major pharma companies and the FDA when releasing flu strains required for vaccine manufacturing.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the globe, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany has been working with China to help the country meet its new, stringent food-safety regulations. And, thanks to a briefcase-sized Minilab analysis kit, even people in hard-to-reach regions no longer need to worry about the safety of their drugs and therapies.

When combined, these improvements can make a lasting difference for patients and consumers alike. So, while I still don’t take my health for granted, I don’t have to worry about spoilt food, contaminated water, or unsafe drugs and therapies.

I am your body. And, with ever-increasing access to reliable, safe, and shelf-stable products, I can help you thrive and pursue your future path with confidence. 

Universal access to safe vaccines, uncontaminated food, and clean water?

We can imagine it. Can you?