NGS in Food Safety and Authenticity Testing Market (2026-2036)

The growth of this market is mainly driven by the adoption of whole-genome sequencing (WGS) as the standard method for foodborne pathogen surveillance and outbreak investigation by public health and food safety agencies, the growing incidence of food fraud and the need for reliable species and origin authentication, stricter food safety and traceability regulations, and the declining cost and increasing speed of sequencing. In addition, the use of DNA metabarcoding and metagenomics to detect multiple species and microorganisms in complex foods, the adoption of genomic environmental monitoring by food manufacturers, the surveillance of antimicrobial resistance in the food chain, and the development of portable sequencing and cloud-based databases are further supporting the growth of this market.

The Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) in Food Safety and Authenticity Testing Market, also referred to as the food genomics market, NGS food testing market, or genomic food safety and authenticity market, comprises the sequencing instruments, kits and reagents, software and databases, and testing services used to apply NGS to the safety and authenticity of food. The market includes whole-genome sequencing of foodborne pathogens for identification, typing, outbreak investigation, source tracking, and antimicrobial resistance characterization; targeted amplicon sequencing and DNA metabarcoding for the identification of animal, plant, fish, and microbial species in food products; shotgun metagenomics for culture-independent pathogen detection and food microbiome analysis; and genomic environmental monitoring in food processing facilities. The market ecosystem extends from sequencing platform and reagent providers to bioinformatics and database providers, contract food testing laboratories, public health and food safety agencies, food manufacturers, processors, and retailers, and research institutions.

The market is experiencing strong growth as genomics transforms how foodborne disease outbreaks are detected and investigated. Whole-genome sequencing provides the highest-resolution method for determining whether pathogens from patients, foods, and food facilities are related, allowing agencies to detect outbreaks earlier, link illnesses to specific sources, and identify persistent contamination in food facilities. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) GenomeTrakr network, a distributed network of laboratories that sequence foodborne pathogens and share data publicly through the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) Pathogen Detection portal, included 89 laboratories as of August 2026, comprising 19 federal laboratories, 40 state health and university laboratories, and 27 laboratories outside the U.S., sequencing pathogens such as Salmonella, Listeria, Escherichia coli and Shigella, Campylobacter, Staphylococcus aureus, and Vibrio parahaemolyticus. PulseNet, the national laboratory network coordinated by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that uses whole-genome sequencing to detect foodborne disease clusters, is estimated to prevent about 270,000 foodborne illnesses from Salmonella, E. coli, and Listeria each year and to save more than USD 500 million annually in medical costs and lost productivity.

Food fraud is a major and growing concern for regulators, food companies, and consumers. Economically motivated adulteration, species substitution, mislabeling of origin, and misuse of protected designations affect meat, seafood, olive oil, honey, herbs, spices, and dietary supplements. In October 2025, Europol reported that Operation OPSON XIV, conducted with authorities from 31 countries, seized 11.6 million kg of food and 1.4 million liters of beverages worth about EUR 95 million, with cases including the illegal slaughter of horses for meat, contaminated clams, misuse of protected geographical indications for olive oil and wine, and the false labeling of origin. DNA-based methods are particularly effective for species identification, and DNA metabarcoding using NGS can detect multiple species in mixed and processed products in a single test, making it a powerful tool for authenticity testing.

Regulation is supporting the adoption of genomics and traceability. The FDA has extended the compliance date for the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) Section 204 Food Traceability Rule by 30 months to July 20, 2028, without changing the requirements of the final rule, which requires companies that handle foods on the Food Traceability List to maintain records that allow foods to be traced back to their source. In the European Union, the European Food Safety Authority and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control coordinate the sharing of WGS data on foodborne pathogens, and official controls on food fraud are being strengthened. Food safety regulations in Asia-Pacific and other regions are also tightening, encouraging the adoption of advanced testing.

Contract testing laboratories and technology providers are expanding genomic food testing capabilities. Eurofins, the largest food testing laboratory network, reported first half 2026 revenue of EUR 3,701 million, with its Life area, which includes food and feed testing, growing 4.8% organically to EUR 1,547 million, supported by mid-single-digit organic growth in food and feed testing in Europe and significant growth in Asia-Pacific. Mérieux NutriSciences, SGS, and Intertek also provide food safety and authenticity testing services, while sequencing platforms from Illumina, Thermo Fisher Scientific, and Oxford Nanopore Technologies and analysis tools from QIAGEN and others are used by public health, regulatory, and commercial laboratories. Portable nanopore sequencing is enabling rapid sequencing closer to the point of need, including in field investigations and smaller laboratories.

Food manufacturers are increasingly using genomics for environmental monitoring and quality control. Sequencing of isolates from processing environments can determine whether contamination is persistent or newly introduced, guiding sanitation and corrective actions, while microbiome analysis of food products and facilities can support spoilage control and process optimization. Genomics is also used to monitor antimicrobial resistance in foodborne bacteria, supporting One Health surveillance of resistance in the food chain.

At the same time, the market faces challenges related to the cost and complexity of NGS compared with established PCR and culture methods, the lack of standardized methods and reference databases for authenticity testing, and the need for validated methods accepted by regulators and courts. Many routine food safety tests continue to rely on culture and PCR, and the adoption of NGS by smaller food companies and laboratories is limited by cost and expertise. As a result, providers that can deliver validated, rapid, and affordable genomic workflows with robust databases and interpretation are expected to capture the largest share of growth over the forecast period.