Eurofins opens first commercial post-entry plant quarantine facility in Australia

Eurofins Agrisearch, part of the Eurofins Agroscience Services group, the largest agrochemical and veterinary medicines Contract Research Organisation in the world, announces the opening of their new state-of-the-art quarantine facility located in Toowoomba, Queensland.  The facility will replace the previous government quarantine facility at Eagle Farm, Brisbane, for seed imports into Australia. The facility was officially opened on Wednesday 10 September by John Chapman, Managing Director, Agri-Science Queensland, Department of Agriculture Fisheries and Forestry Queensland.

Following the announcement of the closure of the Eagle Farm post-entry quarantine facility, the Department of Agriculture Fisheries and Forestry has worked closely with Eurofins Agrisearch and the federal Department of Agriculture to facilitate the establishment of a new commercial post-entry quarantine service.  Eurofins Agrisearch is Australia's largest independent Contract Research Organisation and has close ties with the seed industry providing both field and laboratory based research.

This new investment by Eurofins Agrisearch provides an even greater commitment to support agricultural development in Australia.  Such a development would not be feasible, either economically or logistically without industry and government participation.  The result of over a year of planning is that a large proportion of post-entry quarantine for future seed imports has been outsourced to Eurofins Agrisearch who has designed, constructed and staffed this new regionally based facility.  The facility is equipped with the latest environmental monitoring and control features and has a low environmental footprint, being largely powered by solar energy and having its own, on-site, waste treatment plant.  With 300m² of bench space it has the capacity for up to 10,000 plants at a time.  The facility will mainly cater for corn, cotton, sorghum, sunflower and pulses but will be available for both summer and winter cereal crops and will provide a secure quarantine service for the Australian seed industry well into the future.

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Notes for the editor:

Eurofins - a global leader in bio-analysis

Eurofins Scientific is the world leader in food and pharmaceutical products testing. It is also number one in the world in the field of environmental laboratory services and one of the global market leaders in agroscience, genomics, discovery pharmacology and central laboratory services.

With over 16,000 staff in more than 200 laboratories across 36 countries, Eurofins offers a portfolio of over 100,000 reliable analytical methods for evaluating the safety, identity, composition, authenticity, origin and purity of biological substances and products. The Group provides its customers with high-quality services, accurate results on time and expert advice by its highly qualified staff.

Eurofins is committed to pursuing its dynamic growth strategy by expanding both its technology portfolio and its geographic reach. Through R&D and acquisitions, the Group draws on the latest developments in the field of biotechnology and analytical chemistry to offer its clients unique analytical solutions and the most comprehensive range of testing methods.

As one of the most innovative and quality oriented international players in its industry, Eurofins is ideally positioned to support its clients' increasingly stringent quality and safety standards and the expanding demands of regulatory authorities around the world.

The shares of Eurofins Scientific are listed on the NYSE Euronext Paris Stock Exchange (ISIN FR0000038259, Reuters EUFI.PA, Bloomberg ERF FP).

Important disclaimer:

This press release contains forward-looking statements and estimates that involve risks and uncertainties. The forward-looking statements and estimates contained herein represent the judgement of Eurofins Scientific’ management as of the date of this release. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees for future performance, and the forward-looking events discussed in this release may not occur. Eurofins Scientific disclaims any intent or obligation to update any of these forward-looking statements and estimates. All statements and estimates are made based on the information available to the Company’s management as of the date of publication, but no guarantee can be made as to their validity.