Company briefs - 2010-09-16

The lactic bacterium ME-3, developed at the University of Tartu, was granted a European patent and will hence be available in 24 European countries, reports National Broadcasting. In Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania the ME-3 bacterium is currently used in the dairy industry, in yogurt, kefir and in cheese curds, but producers of food supplements have also expressed interest. The ME-3 bacterium was already under patent in Estonia, Russia and the U.S. The new patent might mean a breakthrough in the medicine industry. Tartu University medical biochemistry professor Mihkel Zilmer, one of the discoverers of ME-3, said that there are bacteria with similar qualities in the world, but ME-3 is unique, as it has a dual effect; it also has antioxidant effects.

Over the eight months of this year, Vilnius International Airport (TVOU) served 962,700 passengers, an increase of 10 percent year-on-year, reports ELTA. In August this year, 148,200 passengers used the services of the airport, which showed a 7 percent growth compared with the same month last year. Over January-August 2010, the number of flights at TVOU rose by a fifth and the cargo handled at the airport went up by a fourth. In August alone, the number of flights served by the airport rose by 12 percent and the volume of cargo increased by 26 percent year-on-year. Given such results, TVOU is the second busiest airport in the Baltic States, outpaced by Riga, with its 3.3 million passengers and followed by Tallinn with 908,801 passengers served.