The importance of such an investment was highlighted last year when Foster's Asian unit increased sales after its Japanese competitor, Shizoka, reportedly lost about a quarter of its rodent population to a viral outbreak.

FORBES: Magazine Article

It is difficult to get laboratory confirmation of a suspected norovirus outbreak, so the "Kaplan Criteria" often are applied to determine the likelihood that the outbreak is of viral origin.

FORBES: Commentary

At the cutting edge, new studies of virus evolution and chips housing tiny cell cultures will improve our capacity to sort through the viral chatter and determine if a newly identified outbreak has the potential to spread globally or is likely to fade away.

ECONOMIST: Science