News update
12 May 2020
Protectus Viridis passes EU standards for effectiveness against coronaviruses
Protectus Viridis surface disinfectants and hand sanitisers have undergone independent testing and are found to be effective against coronaviruses.
Tests for effectiveness against coronaviruses
The EU standards EN14476:2013 + A2:2019 are test methods used to measure the effectiveness of disinfectants against coronaviruses. This covers all enveloped viruses including all coronaviruses.
The minimum requirement for a claim of effectiveness efficacy against coronaviruses, including the SARS-Cov-2 coronavirus which causes the COVID-19 disease, is to pass EN 14476:2013 + A2 2019 against the vaccinia virus.
EN 14476 is a Phase 2, Step 1 suspension test to evaluate the virucidal activity of chemical disinfectants intended for use in the medical area. According to EU Standards, passing EN 14476:2013 + A2 2019 to either limited spectrum virucidal activity or full virucidal activity allows a claim against SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19).
Viridus is recognised under EU standards for effectiveness against coronaviruses
In May 2020, Viridis had undergone independent testing at BluTest Laboratories Ltd for EN14476:2013 + A2:2019.
At a dilution of 3%, Viridis was found to be effective against the vaccinia virus within 5 minutes. For safety reasons, the vaccinia virus, which is an enveloped virus, is used in EU test methods as a surrogate or proxy for all coronaviruses.
Based on these test results, Viridis complies with and is recognised under EU standards EN14476:2013 + A2:2019 . Therefore, Viridis is effective against coronaviruses, including the SARS-Cov-2 coronavirus which causes the COVID-19 disease.
Stronger microbiocidal efficacy for Viridis products in Asia
The Viridis products used in the tests were at a 3% dilution, which is the minimum standard to test for effectiveness against coronaviruses.
In Asia, our water-based Viridis products manufactured and marketed by SurfaceTech use a 5% dilution (instead of a 3% dilution used in our European products). Viridis products in Asia are also compliant with the EN1500 standard, which is the standard to which alcohol-based sanitisers are assessed for microbiocidal efficacy.
With a 5% dilution, Viridis’ Asia products are held to similar or even higher standards and have proven to have a fast and strong effectiveness against microbes.
Surface disinfection and hand hygiene remain important practices due to high survivability of SARS-Cov-2
Around the world, understanding of the SARS-Cov-2 coronavirus which causes the COVID-19 disease, its mode of transmission and the symptoms it causes continues to evolve. Global health bodies, including the World Health Organisation (WHO), have advised that the best way to prevent and slow down transmission is to be well-informed about the disease spreads.
Based on existing knowledge, the SARS-Cov-2 virus spreads primarily through droplets of saliva or discharge from the nose when an infected person coughs or sneezes. The virus is reported to be able to survive on surfaces for varying durations.
Coronaviruses are well known to be particularly resilient in terms of where they can survive. Recent studies on other coronaviruses such as those which cause SARS and MERS have found that they can survive on metal, glass and plastic for as long as nine days, unless they are properly disinfected, with some surviving for up to 28 days in low temperatures (Kampf et al, 2020).
Currently, there are many ongoing clinical trials to evaluate potential treatments such as vaccines or antibodies for treating COVID-19. However, in the absence of specific vaccines, surface disinfection and hand sanitisation remain important practices to reduce the transmission of the virus which causes COVID-19.