An Irish company's testing system has been chosen by the European Commission as the most rapid and specific means of eliminating Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) from the human food chain. Tipperary company Enfer Scientific has been informed that its test had been verified as the only 100 per cent reliable means of detecting BSE in beef carcases.
Enfer Scientific was one of four short-listed companies within the EU to undergo a two-year evaluation programme managed by the European Directorate General for Consumer Health Protection.
It is likely Enfer will now license out its testing system to large pharmaceutical companies for international application in testing programmes.
"We will be looking to give it out to a good stable where health priorities will be paramount, and not an operation just after a quick buck," says Mr O'Connor, technical director at Enfer Scientific.
The entirely Irish developed test saw off competition from France, Switzerland and the UK, largely on the basis of its speed in achieving results. The PrPsc test, which detects the protein responsible for the disease in central nervous tissue, produces results in less than four hours.
One test unit is capable of processing around 1,000 samples per day, making it practical for use in large scale meat plants. Now it has received the endorsement of the EU Commission it will become the preferred test for countries and companies planning on putting an official BSE test programme in place.
The company was founded in 1991 and employs 21 people. It is run by Mr Louis Ronan and Mr Michael O'Connor and has offices in Newbridge, Co Kildare, and Dublin.
Last September it won the overall prize in the National Innovation Awards, sponsored by PricewaterhouseCoopers and The Irish Times and supported by Forfas.
