Dual Nature of Bacteriophages: Friends or Enemies in the Food Industry?—2nd Edition

Dear Colleagues,

Bacteriophages are viruses that infect specific bacterial hosts and show promise in applications for improving microbiological food safety. Their use is being explored in various areas of the food industry, including primary production, bio-sanitation, and food biopreservation.

Strictly lytic bacteriophages are considered a safe and effective alternative to traditional antimicrobial methods, supporting sustainable and health-orientated food production in line with the “farm to fork” strategy.

For the second edition of this Special Issue, we invite contributions that deepen our understanding of bacteriophages and their potential applications as biocontrol agents throughout the food chain. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

• The isolation and characterization of novel bacteriophages targeting spoilage or pathogenic bacteria;
• Mechanisms underlying phage-related pathogenicity and bacterial resistance;
• The development of innovative bacteriophage-based biocontrol strategies and tools;
• The evaluation of phage biopreparations and their practical implementation in the food industry.

We warmly encourage submissions in the form of original research articles, reviews, and communications, offering new insights and perspectives on the application of bacteriophages in food safety and biotechnology.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Michał Wójcicki
Prof. Dr. Barbara Sokolowska
Dr. Ewa Jończyk-Matysiak
Guest Editors

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