MDG News and Updates

No matter the application, treating wastewater is often like solving an intricate puzzle. Getting all the pieces to fit together takes the right combination of knowledge, experience, and having cold, hard data by your side. To keep it simple, we’ve outlined THREE ways our technical support team can help you (and your customers) succeed in your next wastewater treatment application: Is this the Right Opportunity? Don’t waste your time! Make sure you start by asking questions and taking system survey measurements based on the type of system you’re looking to treat. Once you have a clear picture of the environment, you’ll know if you have an opportunity that’s a good fit. Our technical support team at MDG makes it easy to gather these measurements upfront with industry-specific programs. We make sure you’ll know the right questions to ask in different scenarios, so beyond gathering technical data, you’re looking at the monetary values around how a facility is currently operating (i.e.: chemical usage, hauling costs, physical removal, etc.). All of this information will help you demonstrate the full financial impact of bringing in bioaugmentation. Creating a Successful Treatment Plan Once you’ve found an opportunity where bioaugmentation can be the hero, you’ll need to […]

As part of our Feed Clean Save vision, our team holds an annual cereal drive to benefit one of our favorite local charities: Hunger Task Force. This year, we went even bigger and upped our donation goal to 600 boxes. Sparked by some healthy competition, our team was able to exceed this goal and collected a total of 719 boxes of cereal for the Hunger Task Force Holiday Food Drive. To celebrate our success, we pied some brave MDG team members IN THE FACE! Can’t wait to up the ante next year! CLICK HERE to read more about this year’s event.

Microbial Discovery Group LLC (MDG), a leading R&D driven product development and Bacillus fermentation company, announced that as of January 2020 the brand will be refreshed with a new logo and color scheme. MDG wanted to share the rationale behind the updates and what they represent for their brand and customers. “Having experienced significant growth over the past few years and expansion into new markets, it was time to bring cohesion to our brand and our company values of working to Feed, Clean, and Save the World,” explained Jackie Worth, Head of Marketing. “We needed the ability to clearly communicate MDG’s commitment to our values and unique identity.” The new bolder logo and color scheme work to better represent the company’s drive towards creating cutting edge solutions backed by what they describe as Real Science, Trusted Process, and Proven Success in their corporate tagline. “Our new logo really embodies the strength we have within our R&D team as we gain momentum towards safely meeting the growing market demands from Probiotic Usage, Plant Health, Antibiotic Alternatives, and Biological Solutions within Wastewater and Industrial and Institutional cleaning,” added Michael King, CEO/CSO. With healthy growth projections for 2020, MDG remains extremely committed to providing value for their customers […]

Our big “why” at Microbial Discovery Group is to Feed, Clean and Save the World. As our products work to do this daily, our employees also find great value in supporting local companies whose efforts work to do the same. For the past five years, MDG has participated in The Hunger Task Force (HTF) Holiday Food Drive. This drive supplies over 1500 families with holiday food bins. What is MDG’s part in the bins?… CEREAL! We’re excited to share that our 5th Annual Cereal Drive was our largest yet. With the support of our partner, United Animal Health in Sheridan, IN, and the generosity of our employees, MDG donated over 700 boxes! These record-breaking numbers encourage us to dream bigger for the 2020 Cereal Drive. It is our hope that next year local companies and MDG partners will join us in this impactful outreach. This year’s contribution to HTF nearly doubled last year’s efforts. Curious as to what sparked the engagement? Six MDG Employees graciously agreed to be part of a pie-in-the-face contest. The rules were simple, if MDG donated over 600 boxes, all six employees would get pied. Turns out, a little fun makes for a good fundraiser. Stay tuned […]

Thanks to hard-working individuals like Ben Clark, MDG recently completed our HACCP recertification audit for food and feed Bacillus cultures! We’re lucky to have a team that works hard at maintaining such a solid foundation for our everyday operations.   1. What drew you to Microbial Discovery Group? I first started my career at a small, private laboratory. During that time, I really enjoyed the close-knit and collaborative feeling that comes with working in a smaller company. Microbial Discovery Group offers that same type of environment – a diverse group of people with a variety of skills and experiences all working together across departments towards a common goal. 2. What does your typical day look like? Ask anybody here and they’ll all say the same thing – there’s no such thing as a typical day! Part of what makes this job so interesting is that there is always a new set of challenges to face. My day is usually split between our daily QC tasks to ensure everything we produce meets our specifications and our customer’s expectations, as well as helping to make sure both our Franklin and Oak Creek locations remain in regulatory compliance. 3. What are you working on right […]

Kaley Pederson came to MDG as a recent college graduate. Her fresh talent and hard work ethic have made her an excellent addition to the research team! 1. What drew you to Microbial Discovery Group? I was initially drawn in by the variety of things that are done here! Before I joined the team, I did some research and found it interesting to see how far the work spans into so many different applications. As a recent graduate, I was also attracted to the opportunities for growth as well as the growing and innovative culture. 2. What does your typical day look like?  I think everyone that works here can agree that a “typical day” doesn’t really exist, but that’s what keeps things interesting! Day to day I could be performing totally different laboratory techniques for different purposes. From there, my work is used to gain new insights into helping solve some of today’s problems. 3. What are you working on right now? Lately, a lot of my time has been spent helping develop a new product designed to help promote overall gut health 4. What is the most inspiring part of your job? I think one of the most […]

Bacillus are capable of using many types of organic material as a source of energy, and they are very good at adapting their metabolic processes to use whatever energy source is nearby. When sufficient nutrients are available, Bacillus will continually multiply. This is known as exponential growth. Figure 1. Growth of Bacillus when one energy source is available They will continue to grow until their preferred food source is exhausted. Then they will change their metabolic machinery and start using a different food source. During this metabolic shift, there will be a brief pause in growth while the Bacillus make the necessary changes; such as producing different enzymes. After this pause, exponential growth will resume. This process will repeat until all available nutrients have been exhausted. This characteristic of Bacillus makes it a sought-after ingredient in Industrial and Institutional products as Bacillus will continue to work until it has adapted to and utilized all available wastes. Figure 2. Growth of Bacillus when multiple volatile fatty acids are available Bacillus’ ability to grow exponentially in the presence of a food source was demonstrated in the following in-house study. This study measured SporActiv® Bacillus utilization of odor causing volatile fatty acids (VFAs). When one food source was available, Bacillus grew exponentially until that food source was depleted (Figure […]

As the leader of our Process Development Team, Dominic oversees the strain optimization and fermentation scale-up process. Since joining our team in 2015, he has also played a vital role in our expansion project to increase manufacturing capacity. 1. What drew you to Microbial Discovery Group? I’ve always been fascinated by the synergy between biology and engineering. While in college, I worked on various projects that involved use of microorganisms to make products for different applications – as feed source and for energy production. These experiences inspired me to follow this path professionally. MDG’s mission to “Feed, Clean and Save” the world greatly aligns with my personal and professional interests. All in all, it was the opportunity to research, develop, and apply products that make an impact on people’s lives that ultimately drew me to MDG. 2. What does your typical day look like? My day varies quite a bit. I work closely with teams from Process Development, Production, QC, and R&D to monitor day-to-day processes and activities in the lab as well as on the production floor. On a typical day, we may have meetings to review results from recent batch runs where we troubleshoot and determine cause and […]

When organic waste breaks down, it can generate ammonia, which is a toxic substance that produces a foul, sharp odor. In the Industrial and Institutional (I&I) market, your customers walk past ammonia-causing matter daily, such as food, animal and human waste. These same wastes contain materials that are rich in nitrogen. As the waste decomposes, the nitrogen is converted to ammonia, causing an unpleasant odor. But, without nitrogen, there’s no ammonia… and that’s where Bacillus come into play. All living organisms need a source of nitrogen to support life, including Bacillus. Bacillus strains can utilize the nitrogen in ammonia for bacterial growth. In order to get the nitrogen, Bacillus digest the available ammonia, removing it from the environment and preventing odor. RESULTS In the case of our SporActiv™ products, we specifically selected strains of Bacillus that have high ammonia utilizing capabilities. The more ammonia that is utilized by the Bacillus means less complaints and foul smells. At MDG, a study was conducted to measure the growth of SporActiv™ Foundation in the presence of ammonia. When ammonia was present, there was more bacterial growth, indicating the Bacillus were able to utilize the ammonia nitrogen to support growth (Figure 1). When choosing a Bacillus product, you should also keep in mind that not all Bacillus are able to utilize ammonia at […]

We’ve heard it time and time again, “Does this stuff really work”? This sparked an idea. Why don’t we help our partners eliminate any doubt upfront by sharing in-field results? Better yet, let’s demonstrate how easy it can be for them to create their own. After all, seeing is believing! Through years of successful treatment and having now created 40+ case studies, our distribution partners have proven that these studies are the best tool for creating new believers in bioaugmentation. Because of this, we focus a big part of our training around taking key measurements in the field so that the creation of these case studies is possible. Our team of experts are hands-on in and the field with our partners, demonstrating when and how to properly gather data. As a result, partners can quickly and easily create case studies of their very own. Here are just some of the many benefits we’ve seen from building in a results-driven approach with our partners: Working hands-on in the field accelerates learning for our new distribution partners. Seeing is believing! Case studies validate that bioaugmentation products truly work. Having proof of this creates a strong marketing tool for future business. When our partners demonstrate measurable success […]