From one crisis to another

In the midst of the mad cow and foot-and-mouth disease crisis in 2001, Serge Auray was watching television with his wife and was saddened to see that thousands of animals were going to be burned for lack of a solution. A visionary, the entrepreneur specializing in the cleaning of clean rooms and laboratories began to take a more active interest in the animal traceability chain and food safety – concepts that were still very little known. With Dr. Sylvain Quessy, a veterinarian and microbiology researcher, he set out to develop disinfectant solutions from farm to table.

Five years of laboratory research and 42 patents later, the co-founders of Laboratoire M2 created Thymox, a natural disinfectant based on an active molecule derived from thyme essential oil, thymol. "It is used in agriculture, the food industry, schools, hospitals or at home, in the same way as a disinfectant spray from a well-known brand. The difference is that it kills bacteria and viruses more quickly, without toxicity," explains the CEO of Laboratoire M2. "You could almost drink it!"

A product that kills coronavirus The most remarkable thing: Thymox can eliminate fungi, bacteria and viruses that are harmful to human or animal health. Coronavirus is one of them. Result: "Our order book has exploded," exclaims Mr. Auray. From the 18 barrels ordered in January, we have now increased to 512. In addition to our customers (located in the United States, China and elsewhere), we are in submission with Iran, Nigeria, Turkey, Italy, Spain, India, South Korea and it's only just beginning."

"We are in a niche market with a natural disinfectant product for surfaces and counters," he says. "Our competitors are the chemical products that we know and that work, but that contain harmful ingredients."

Crisis management

In a few days, Serge Auray will create a second shift to meet demand. "We are all looking for temporary solutions, but I think it will be a long time before everything is restored," he observes. This crisis will bring about a change in culture, particularly with regard to hygiene in public spaces. I am thinking in particular of the large transport companies that have increased the frequency of vehicle cleaning." The changes are also likely to be felt at home, he believes, with the cleaning of hands, surfaces and door handles, in particular.

“We didn’t raise our prices, we stayed focused on our mission and our values,” says Auray. “I think we were simply in the right place at the right time. Obviously, no one wanted a pandemic, but my idea was born in the context of another health crisis. Here we are 18 years later with disinfectant solutions.”

Laboratoire M2 does not sell the finished product, but the Thymox concentrate to partners who take care of assembling and bottling it. For example, here in Quebec, Thymox technology is available under the Bioesque Solutions and SafeBlend brand products.