PARIS (REUTERS) - A French consortium announced on Monday (May 25) the launch of the production phase for a saliva-based screening test to detect the Covid-19 coronavirus.

The consortium said the test would be performed by a healthcare professional and involves collecting less than 1 millilitre of saliva from a patient. The sample is then deposited in two tubes heated to 65 deg C, and a subsequent reading screens the tested patients for the presence of the virus.

The consortium - comprised of French companies Vogo , Skillcell and the CNRS SYS2DIAG laboratory - hoped its "EasyCov" product would enter the French market from mid-June onwards.