Persistent Threats: A Comprehensive Review of Biofilm Formation, Control, and Economic Implications in Food Processing Environments

Abstract

Biofilms are structured microbial communities that pose significant challenges to food safety and quality within the food-processing industry. Their formation on equipment and surfaces enables persistent contamination, microbial resistance, and recurring outbreaks of foodborne illness. This review provides a comprehensive synthesis of current knowledge on biofilm formation mechanisms, genetic regulation, and the unique behavior of multi-species biofilms. The review evaluates modern detection and monitoring technologies, including PCR, biosensors, and advanced microscopy, and compares their effectiveness in industrial contexts. Real-world outbreak data and a global economic impact analysis underscore the urgency for more effective regulatory frameworks and sanitation innovations. The findings highlight the critical need for integrated, proactive biofilm management approaches to safeguard food safety, reduce public health risks, and minimize economic losses across global food sectors.

Keywords: biofilms; food safety; food-processing environments; foodborne pathogens; sanitation.

Figure 1

Distribution of biofilm-associated contamination across food sectors. Legend: Sectoral risk distribution based on literature evidence of biofilm occurrence and contamination trends (references [91,92,93,94,95,96,97,98,99,100,101,102,103,104,105,106,107,108,109,110,111,112,113,114,115,116,117,118,119,120,121,122,123,124,125,126,127,128,129,130,131,132,133,134,135,136,137,138,139,140,141,142,143,144,145,146,147,148,149,150,151,152,153,154,155,156,157,158]). Exact percentages are conceptual and based on combined qualitative data from the reviewed studies.

Figure 2

Estimated economic losses from biofilm contamination by country. Legend: Values are conceptual estimates derived from qualitative synthesis and sector studies, intended to illustrate cross-country comparison data from the reviewed studies [159,165,166,167,168,169,170,171,172,173,174,175,176,177,178,179,180,181,182,183,184,185,186,187,188,189,190,191,192,193,194,195].