Irish test for BSE wins US approval

A Tipperary-based BSE testing firm, Enfer Scientific, has beaten its rivals to become the first rapid test approved by US authorities in the wake of the BSE crisis that has decimated its export market.

Enfer said yesterday that its test, which is marketed and distributed outside the State by Abbott Laboratories, was the first of competing tests to win US approval.

The company is hoping that "first mover" advantage can help it establish a strong position in the US, which has a $38 billion (€31.6 billion) beef industry. The Enfer test can produce results on samples in three-and-a-half hours.

The US Department of Agriculture recently announced plans for a tenfold increase in the number of animals it tests on an annual basis, after initially planning to only double its testing programme.

"The rapid Enfer BSE test provides results within hours, is easy to use and addresses the workflow needs of the US Department of Agriculture approved screening laboratories," the company said in a statement.

At present, the only test in use in the US can take up to five days to report results, creating serious problems for exporters. It is also more expensive than the Enfer test, which is available from about $10 a kit.

In the Republic, the full test, including laboratory analysis, costs about €22.

From June 1st, under an enhanced surveillance plan put together in the wake of the US's first recorded case of BSE last December, the US will test 268,000 animals in 18 months.

However, Japan, a key export market for US beef, is insisting that all animals are tested. Japan, together with other important Asian markets such as South Korea, has banned US beef since news of the presence of BSE in the US herd broke.

Mexico is also among the 50 countries that have closed their doors to US beef.

Enfer and other companies offering test products have been reluctant to put a figure on the US market.

However, about 10 million of the 35 million cattle slaughtered annually in the US are over the 30-month threshold that Europe has used for testing. If testing were extended to these, it would create a market worth around $300 million a year.

At present, the US intends to concentrate on testing "downer" animals - those that die on farms, are lame or are exhibiting signs of disease - although it will conduct some random testing on apparently healthy animals.

Proponents of greater testing in the US have also pointed to results from Europe that indicate two-thirds of positive tests come from animals exhibiting no symptoms of BSE.

Enfer operates the world's largest BSE screening laboratory at Newbridge, Co Kildare. The company, which has headquarters in Cashel, Co Tipperary, employs 130 people.