Application of Bacteriophages in the Agro-Food Sector: A Long Way Toward Approval

The rapid increase in multi-drug resistant (MDR) pathogens has put notable pressure on Health , who foresee an uncertain future for global human health. In June 2017, the European adopted the “EU One Health action plan against antimicrobial resistance,” thereby a framework for reducing the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance as well boosting the development of new effective antimicrobials. Nowadays, nobody doubts that the use antibiotics in agro-food production should be properly controlled, as it represents a major source bacterial resistance acquisition that further reaches clinical settings. Therefore, bacteria control other than antibiotics are presently being assessed in order to both reduce food-borne and stop the spread of MDR zoonotic bacteria. Among the many antimicrobials to replace or complement traditional antibiotics, bacteriophages and phage-derived (collectively known as phage therapy) are strong candidates for the treatment of human infections, rescuing the idea from previous work made in Eastern Europe (Sulakvelidze Morris, 2001). However, after their resurgence almost 20 years ago, it is rather puzzling that we not have more commercial phage-based products to fight against MDR bacteria. To understand phage therapy strategies are taking so long to reach the market, we need to examine in detail nature and properties of these antimicrobials, as well as the existing legal framework