EnviroLogix Launches Quick Test Kit for Melamine in Feed

EnviroLogix Inc. has introduced the first five-minute, on-site immunoassay to detect melamine contamination in raw materials used in animal feed and pet food products.

QuickTox Kit for Melamine was developed with speed, simplicity and sensitivity in mind. As sensitive as ELISA, it is designed to detect melamine contamination at 2.5 ppm, the threshold established by regulatory agencies worldwide for non-infant food products.

Intended for use at material-receiving points, the test enables accurate and visual screening of numerous sample types, including corn gluten meal, distillers grains (DDG), cottonseed meal, and soybean meal. It may also be adapted to detect melamine in finished pet food and milk.

"We developed this rapid test in response to industry need for a more effective way to triage raw materials being delivered to the feed plant -- and before those materials enter the manufacturing process," said Simon Varney, product manager for the EnviroLogix line of agricultural test kits. "This melamine test enables feed processors and others to ensure the quality of their ingredients and to provide buyers with confidence in finished products."

Based in Portland, Maine, EnviroLogix is a leading provider of rapid diagnostics for agricultural, horticultural and environmental applications. The QuickTox Kit for Melamine complements the company's growing line of feed and food safety products, which include test kits for various mycotoxins.

The test itself is a lateral flow strip, or so-called "dipstick." In principle, specific color-coded antibodies bind to melamine molecules in a sample. In a positive result, the antibody-melamine complex travels up the strip and inhibits color development at the Test Line. In a negative sample, unbound antibodies migrate up the strip and are captured at the Test Line, resulting in color development. All strips include an internal control to ensure the test was performed correctly.

The QuickTox Kit for Melamine, Catalog # AS 073 BG, includes 50 test strips and all the accessories needed.

Melamine is a nitrogen-rich industrial chemical often used in plastics and adhesives. Allegedly, it has been used by raw materials suppliers to increase the apparent protein content in various food and feed products. Melamine has low acute toxicity but prolonged exposure can lead to urinary stones and other health problems. Contamination incidents have led to massive product recalls across different industries.