A New Brunswick biotechnology company is ramping up its production to supply Canada’s public health agency with the specific chemicals needed for 500,000 COVID-19 tests per week, according to its CEO.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Wednesday that the government had signed a contract with Fredericton-based LuminUltra to boost the supply of those chemicals — often referred to as reagents — which are urgently needed by provinces across the country testing their residents for the novel coronavirus.
Amid the pandemic, demand for those reagents has outpaced supply and as a result, some provinces have grappled with testing backlogs in their public health laboratories.
LuminUltra had been in talks with Ottawa over the past few weeks and the reagents requested are already on the move, according to company chairman and CEO Pat Whalen.
“We began shipping last week,” Whalen told Global News. “We’re making 500,000 tests per week and then the public health authority basically directs traffic as to which provinces it goes to.”
Asked how long the company has been contracted to fulfill that production, Whalen said: “We’ve been asked to basically be prepared to do this for at least a year at that 500,000-tests-per-week volume.
“We also have the capability or capacity to ramp that up if we decide that more tests are needed or to be able to run it longer beyond that one-year period, if asked,” he added.
LuminUltra already specializes in rapid-results testing technology, typically in the area of environmental and water testing, according to Whalen. But he said “the basis for these reagents is basically the same across the board” and the company worked with the Public Health Agency of Canada to understand exactly what was needed.
A Wednesday news release from LuminUltra noted the company has “the specialized tools and talent need to produce the tests quickly, accurately and in large quantities.” Whalen added that the company will make some new hires and make investments in equipment and facilities to maintain “that same clip of production for the next year.”
Asked whether it’s only supplying the reagents within Canada at this time, Whalen said LuminUltra has been “very focused” on responding to the federal government’s March 20 call to action to domestic manufacturers and businesses.
“At this time we’re only we’re only focused on Canada,” he said. “But we do have the capacity to ramp up, as I say, if there are other inquiries that get made, or we’re certainly listening.
“We’re proud to be able to do our part. I’m extraordinarily proud of my team and how they were able to very quickly contribute towards solving this problem.”
Trudeau also said Wednesday the government recently received a new batch of swabs needed for COVID-19 tests.
“Whether it’s reagents or test kits, we are ensuring that Canada has the tools to fight this virus,” Trudeau said.
Earlier this week, Health Canada approved a rapid, portable COVID-19 test developed by Ottawa-based Spartan Bioscience, which can reportedly provide results in less than an hour without having to send a sample to a lab.
The test can be administered by “non-laboratory personnel” in places like airports or pharmacies, or remote regions of the country, according to the company.
–With files from Andrew Russell, Patrick Cain and Maryam Shah
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