Brakke Consulting’s
Animal Health News & Notes for September 15, 2006
Copyright © Brakke Consulting, Inc.
Editor: Lynn Fondon, DVM, MBA
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IN THE NEWS:
other news
Biogal
Cipla
Echo Healthcare Acquisition
Evialis
Golden VetPath
IDEXX
Intervet
Merial
Nutreco
Pet DRx
Trouw Nutrition France
XLNT Veterinary Care
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BRAKKE CONSULTING, INC.
EQUINE MARKET MEGA-STUDY
Order now and SAVE!
The Equine Market Mega-Study, a comprehensive study of horse owner buying and decision-making behavior, will soon get underway.
This first-of-a-kind survey examines horse owner purchases by equine segment. Based on more than 1,000 respondents in a random national survey, the report covers purchasing frequency by brand and by type of sales outlet, including veterinarians, Internet suppliers, catalogs, event exhibitors and brick-and-mortar retail stores.
The study tracks purchases of individual brands in such product categories as:
– Dewormers
– Insect control
– Feed and treats
– Skin and coat care
– Liniments and other muscle treatments
– Ulcer prevention and treatment
– Wound care
– Supplements of all kinds
– Vaccines
– Pain management and other medications
The study also measures readership of individual equine publications and websites, as well as use of equine radio and television programming as information sources. The report also includes a wealth of information on horse owner demographics and segments.
The Equine Market Mega-Study will be published by Jan. 12, 2007. Price is $12,500. Companies that order by Oct. 2, 2006 with payment by Oct. 31 receive a $1,000 discount. Advance purchasers will also have an opportunity to review the survey questionnaire for completeness of brand identities prior to fielding the study.
The research is being conducted by Brakke Consulting, Inc., in cooperation with Market Directions, Inc.
For more information contact John Volk, jvolk@brakkeconsulting.com or (773) 327-4941.
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COMPANY NEWS RELEASES
> Merial, maker of PUREVAX Ferret Distemper vaccine, announced it will continue to produce the vaccine, and veterinarians can have confidence that the currently backordered product will be available again in 2007. PUREVAX Ferret Distemper vaccine is currently the only USDA-licensed ferret distemper vaccine available. (company press release)
> Intervet announced it has received USDA approval for its PreveNile equine West Nile Virus vaccine. PreveNile is the first one-dose modified live virus vaccine for prevention of viremia caused by West Nile virus infection in horses. (company press release)
> Nutreco announced that the feed specialty business of its French subsidiary Trouw Nutrition France has been the subject of a acquisition bid by Evialis. The subsidiary recorded sales of EUR 20 million ($25 million) in 2005. Nutreco says that it considers the proposal “interesting” as its feed specialties business in France is too small to ensure growth. (Animal Pharm)
> IDEXX Reference Laboratories, a division of IDEXX Laboratories, Inc., announced the acquisition of the assets and business activities of the Golden Veterinary Laboratory C.C. (Golden VetPath), which has locations in Johannesburg, Pretoria and Cape Town, South Africa. The Golden VetPath laboratories are the first IDEXX reference laboratory locations on the African continent. Financial terms were not disclosed. (company website)
> Echo Healthcare Acquisition Corp. announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire privately-held XLNT Veterinary Care, Inc. XLNT, which operates under the brand Pet DRx, is a provider of veterinary primary care services to companion animals through a network of fully-owned veterinary hospitals. The Company currently owns and operates 11 veterinary hospitals throughout California. As of September 11, 2006, XLNT has executed definitive agreements to acquire five additional veterinary hospitals that are expected to close within the next sixty days and has entered into nonbinding letters of intent with respect to twelve additional hospitals. The all-stock transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2007. (PRNewswire)
> Biogal announced the upcoming launch of two new products at the coming WSAVA congress: Canine VacciCheck (Infectious Hepatitis, Parvovirus, Distemper) and Feline VacciCheck (Panleukopenia, Herpesvirus, Calicivirus). The kits provide a rapid serological profiling by an ImmunoComb based dot-ELISA test for three core pet vaccines. (company press release)
> INDIA India’s leading generic pharmaceutical company, Cipla, announced it is expanding its veterinary exports business to the EU and the US. To date, Cipla has been exporting its animal health products to over 90 countries, with Africa, Asia and Latin America its main destinations. Exports account for about 75% of Cipla’s animal health business, which reported sales of about $11 million in 2005-06. (Animal Pharm)
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ANIMAL HEALTH NEWS
> US – BRUCELLOSIS STATUS Wyoming regained its brucellosis-free status, loosening restrictions placed on Wyoming producers by the federal government. An interim rule upgrading Wyoming’s status was made effective by the USDA and will become official when it is published in the Federal Register, which should take place within the next several days. Wyoming lost its class-free status in early 2004 when a second brucellosis-infected herd was found in the state. (Feedstuffs online)
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BRAKKE CONSULTING VIEWPOINT
It appears that much of the industry is spending its time in 2007 budget planning meetings rather than creating news. Feedback from the field continues to be positive with regard to animal products sales for 2006. We expect the results to continue the positive trends when the third quarter and 9-months results are reported in a few weeks.
Earlier in the newsletter we hope you noted that we’re planning a mega-study on horse owner buying and decision-making behavior. We believe that this study will provide equine product and services suppliers with invaluable information on horse owner buying habits – insights that have not been previously available.
Have a great weekend.
Ron Brakke
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This electronic newsletter is the sole property of Brakke Consulting, Inc.
Any use of the contents herein should be approved by and appropriately attributed to Brakke Consulting, Inc.
For more information about Brakke Consulting’s services and syndicated studies, visit our website at www.brakkeconsulting.com.
Brakke Consulting, Inc.
2735 Villa Creek, Suite 140
Dallas, TX 75234 USA
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