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Brakke Consulting’s
Animal Health News & Notes for February 16, 2007
Copyright © Brakke Consulting, Inc.
Editor: Lynn Fondon, DVM, MBA
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IN THE NEWS:
earnings news
Alltech
Intervet
Provimi
Ridley
other news
Elanco
eMerge Interactive
Pfizer
Prionics
VetXX
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NOW AVAILABLE!
EQUINE MARKET MEGASTUDY
The Equine Market MegaStudy is now available. It contains data on 34 different types of products in 17 distinct categories – more than 400 brands in all.
The Equine Market MegaStudy is based on more than 1,000 completed interviews with horse owners. It examined what products horse owners purchase, how often they purchase them, where they purchase, and annual expenditures for each product category.
The 216-page research report is now available for $12,500. For more information, or to purchase the report, contact John Volk at jvolk@brakkeconsulting.com , or (773) 327-4941.
The Equine Market MegaStudy was conducted by Brakke Consulting in cooperation with Market Directions, Inc., a Kansas City-based market research firm and brand performance consultancy.
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COMPANY EARNINGS RELEASES
> Akzo Nobel announced its full year results for 2006. Revenues at Intervet increased by 3% to EUR 1,125 million ($1,484 million) boosted by strong autonomous growth of 6% across all regions and product lines. In Europe, autonomous growth was 5%, while in North America, revenues from ongoing operations grew 12%. (company website)
> Alltech announced its end-of-year results for 2006. Revenue for the year-end was $303 million, up 20% from 2005. (ThePigSite)
> The Provimi Group announced its turnover for the full year 2006. Sales increased by 15% to EUR 1,823 million ($2,405 million) compared to 2005. Progress was particularly good in North America and the emerging markets. On a like-for-like basis sales growth was 9.5%, partly driven by higher selling prices resulting from increased raw material costs. (company website)
> Ridley, Inc. reported results for its fiscal second quarter ended December 31, 2006. Revenue increased by 4% to $144 million in the second quarter. (company website)
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COMPANY NEWS RELEASES
> Morris Animal Foundation (MAF) and Pfizer Animal Health have jointly announced a $1.1 million donation from Pfizer to establish a national canine tumor biospecimen bank. This tumor tissue bank is expected to be an especially valuable asset in the quest to treat and cure cancer in dogs and may provide insights into human cancer as well. This new resource to fight cancer has been named the Pfizer – CCOGC Biospecimen Repository. MAF and the AKC Canine Health Foundation provided the initial funding ($500,000) to launch this national biospecimen bank and will be collaborating to secure the remaining funds. (PRNewswire)
> The FDA amended the animal drug regulations to reflect approval of a new animal drug application (NADA) filed by Elanco Animal Health. The NADA provides for use of fluoxetine hydrochloride chewable tablets for the treatment of canine separation anxiety. (AnimalNet – Federal Register)
> eMerge Interactive, Inc. announced that it filed for voluntary protection under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code. eMerge also announced that it and PRIME BioSolutions, LLC mutually agreed to terminate the previously announced merger agreement between them because adequate financing on acceptable terms was not available. eMerge also announced that it and The Biegert Family Irrevocable Trust signed a non-binding letter of intent for the sale of the assets relating primarily to eMerge’s CattleLog, or “Animal Information Solutions,” business to the Biegert Trust. The Biegert Trust is eMerge’s largest stockholder and beneficially owns approximately 18% of the outstanding shares of eMerge common stock. eMerge also announced that it and Chad, Inc. signed a non-binding letter of intent for the sale of the assets relating primarily to eMerge’s VerifEYE business to Chad. The Chad Letter of Intent provides that the purchase price for the VerifEYE business will be $250,000. (company press release)
> Prionics announced that the USDA has officially validated Prionics’s Parachek, an ELISA test for the pathogen that causes Johne’s disease, for use in bovine milk. Prionics added that currently Parachek is widely used for the detection of antibodies to Mycobacterium paratuberculosis in the serum of cattle, sheep and goats. (Feedstuffs online)
> EU VetXX announced the European launch of Flexicam oral suspension (meloxicam). Flexicam is an NSAID for the control of pain and inflammation in dogs with arthritis. Flexicam is the first new pharma product for VetXX. (company website)
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BRAKKE CONSULTING, INC.
Merger, Acquisition and Divestiture Assistance
Are you interested in growing your business by purchasing another company, product line or technology? Have you been thinking about selling your company, product line or technology? Have you considered merging your company with another firm to improve shareholder value?
Brakke Consulting, Inc. assisted many clients with mergers, acquisitions and divestitures over the last few years. Contact information for all offices is available on our website at www.BrakkeConsulting.com .
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ANIMAL HEALTH NEWS
> US – BOVINE TB A South Dakota cow has been diagnosed with bovine tuberculosis. Initial tests were negative, but a third test confirmed the infection and the herd was quarantined. The state could lose its tuberculosis-free status if more than two herds are found to be infected. (Meating Place)
> US – PET GPS On4 Communications, Inc. (dba: Petsmobility) announced that it has commercially produced and is demonstrating the PetsCell, a 2 way voice-enabled, assisted GPS pet tracking device that is worn on the pet’s collar. The PetsCell is a waterproof, 2-way communication device (2 way speaker/2 way microphone) with Global Positioning Capabilities that provides the pet’s location in real time through a desk top PC or hand held device complete with email notification services. The device allows for pet owners to set a geo-fence boundary that will alert the owner when their pet steps outside the pre-set boundary. (Business Wire)
> US – ANIMAL ANTIBIOTICS BILL The “Preservation of Antibiotics for Medical Treatment Act” was introduced in the Senate and in the U.S. House of Representatives. The bill would phase out within two years the use as animal feed additives of antibiotics that are also important in human medicine, such as penicillin. The bill also requires the pharmaceutical companies making agricultural antibiotics to submit data on the quantity of drugs they sell, along with information on the claimed purpose and the dosage form of those drugs, to help public health officials track the implementation of the phase-out. (Feedstuffs online)
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BRAKKE CONSULTING VIEWPOINT
The comments section of last week created a number of positive responses. Some of you even went so far as to file a Federal Trade Commission complaint related to the misleading advertising and promotion activities of some of the branded food companies. I frankly was surprised that I did not have more responses from the 4,000-plus that receive this newsletter. Has the animal health industry given up on the process of educating the consumers and branded food companies regarding the safety of your products? We’d like to hear your thoughts on this particular issue for the industry.
On a more positive note, on February 15th our www.animalhealthjobs.com had jobseeker resume # 5,000 posted to the resume database. We currently also have over 80 open positions on the site for a number of companies. We would encourage senior management to have your human resources managers visit the site and consider using the services we provide. Each week the number of visits to the site increases. There is no other comparable recruitment site dedicated to the animal health industry.
Have a great weekend and we’ll see many of you in Las Vegas!!
Ron Brakke
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