Aquas sets its sights high on the quality path

Aquas, a spin-off of Bangalore-based testing solutions company Avestha Gengraine Technologies, has set its sights on becoming a leading integrated quality testing and certification company in the country. Aquas offers food, water and seed quality testing services.

The first private sector company to be set up at the Agri Biotech Park of Icrisat six months ago, Aquas offers testing and certification services for genetically modified food and food products.

It is a joint venture between Icrisat and Avesthagen. Icrisat will offer mycotoxin detection technology and infrastructure facilities to the new company.

Disclosing this here at a media conference on the penultimate day of the Bio Asia 2004 summit here today, Villoo Morawala Patell, chief executive officer, Avestha Gengraine, said that Aquas had tied up with Genetic ID of US for testing and certification of genetically modified organisms in food and food products exclusively in India and Bangladesh and non-exclusively in Pakistan.

Aquas offers comprehensive microbial and chemical testing, including that on pesticides, of food products and water; mycotoxin testing of groundnuts and other commodities, apart from organic certification.

It also offers services in meat traceability and pesticides testing and certification, and seed purity testing with DNA market-aided selection screening for seed companies.

It also has the first mover advantage in GMO (genetically modified organism) testing and seed purity testing, apart from DNA fingerprinting activities for the seed industry, Patell said.

She put the potential size of the market opportunity in India for Aquas at $400 million for GMO testing and certification.