Decentralised bird flu testing emerges as game-changer for poultry industry

A new handheld testing device developed by Alveo Technologies promises faster, decentralised detection of avian influenza, addressing a long-standing challenge for poultry producers facing ongoing outbreaks.

Bird flu is now a structural problem for poultry producers, not a passing shock, and one diagnostics company argues the answer lies in faster, decentralised testing rather than waiting for outbreaks to run their course.

Shaun Holt, chief executive of Alveo Technologies, says the company has repositioned itself as a broader detection platform and is now targeting animal health, including poultry. In partnership with Royal GD and x-Ovo, it has launched the Alveo Sense Poultry Avian Influenza Test, a handheld molecular system that can detect avian influenza in cloacal and oropharyngeal samples in about 45 minutes.

Alveo says the device uses loop-mediated isothermal amplification, or LAMP, a method it describes as broadly comparable to PCR in performance but without the need for thermal cycling. The company claims that makes the system smaller, cheaper and easier to use at farm level.

According to Alveo, the test can also distinguish vaccinated birds from those carrying the virus, a feature Holt says proved useful in Africa when a vaccinated flock still tested positive for H5.

The push comes as highly pathogenic avian influenza continues to circulate globally, while the US poultry sector remains wary of both biosecurity failures and the limitations of vaccination. Alveo says it is already approved in about 38 countries and is seeking USDA clearance for the US market.