Animal Health News & Notes for January 5, 2001

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Brakke Consulting’s
Animal Health News & Notes for January 5, 2001
Copyright © Brakke Consulting, Inc.
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NEW BRAKKE CONSULTING STUDY RELEASED

Brakke Consulting announces the release of its newest syndicated study, The Current and Future Market for Small Animal Diagnostics in the USA.  The study includes the following:
    – a review of the US diagnostics market
    – profiles of the leading US diagnostics companies
    – descriptions of the types of in-clinic diagnostics products currently available
    – discussion of potential areas of interest and technologies in development
    – veterinary opinions on current and desired in-clinic products
    – Brakke’s view of the future of veterinary diagnostics

The study will be available January 15 for a price of $2,500.  Please call (972) 243-4033 or email to info@brakkeconsulting.com (mailto:info@brakkeconsulting.com) for more information.

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Company News Releases

>  Aventis Animal Nutrition has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Filozoo, the second-largest animal nutrition company in Italy.  The two companies have worked together through joint ventures in Italy for 10 years.  Financial terms were not disclosed.  (Feedstuffs)

>  Tyson Foods announced that it has entered into a definitive merger agreement with IBP, Inc. Under the terms of the agreement Tyson will acquire all of the outstanding shares of IBP in a transaction valued at approximately $4.7 billion, which includes the assumption of and/or refinancing of approximately $1.5 billion of IBP debt and other obligations. Tyson will pay $30.00 for each share of IBP common stock, with 50.1% of the consideration in cash and the remainder in Tyson Class A common stock. The cash portion of the consideration will be paid as part of Tyson’s current cash tender offer. (Agweb – company press release)

>  Shares of Tyson Foods Inc. fell on Tuesday as investors apparently wanted more convincing on the company’s deal to buy IBP Inc. for $3.1 billion in cash and stock in a deal that will make Tyson the dominant U.S. meat seller.      The stock decline takes Tyson shares below the “collar’’ that had been set to provide beef and pork processor IBP shareholders some price protection, knocking roughly $100 million off the initial value of the deal.  The decline comes while investors are waiting to be convinced that the $30-a-share deal will add 15% to Tyson’s earnings as soon as the deal closes, an assertion Tyson made. Tyson expects the deal to close by Valentine’s Day.
(E-markets – The Arizona Republic)

> Heska Corporation announced that it has entered into a distribution agreement with Novartis Animal Health, granting Novartis exclusive distribution rights for the sale of the Heska E-Screen Test product in Europe.  Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed. The Heska E-Screen Test is a rapid and highly accurate screen for allergen specific IgE, commonly associated with allergic disease.  This product is designed to enable veterinarians to do “point-of-care” screens of dogs with allergic symptoms. Dogs testing positive for allergen specific IgE, may be treated immediately by the veterinarian, or further evaluated using Heska’s ALLERCEPT Detection System, (a laboratory-based blood test) to determine the specific allergens to which the dog is reacting. Novartis Animal Health is expected to sell the Heska E-Screen Test using their direct sales force in the European Union countries and Switzerland starting in mid-2001.  (PRNewswire)

>  The Doskocil Manufacturing Company has teamed up with the Veterinary Information Network (VIN), to help veterinarians and other pet professionals educate the pet-loving public about common health and behavior problems.  Doskocil and VIN will use their available resources in person, in print, and online to help the public understand the benefits of pet population control, behavior modification and training, injury prevention, and preventive veterinary care.  A unique aspect of the partnership will be its focus on the veterinarian-client relationship, to the benefit of both pets and veterinarians.  The program will get its official launch via January announcements in veterinary journals at the North American Veterinary Conference (NAVC) in Orlando. (company press release)

>  Capital Reserve Partners has agreed to purchase Manna Pro Corp. and merge it with Buckeye Nutrition to form a new company.  CRP and a group of key executive will privately hold the new company.  CRP purchased majority interest in Buckeye from Countrymark Co-op in 1998. Terms were not disclosed.  (Feedstuffs)

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  BRAKKE CONSULTING, INC.

Serving the Worldwide Animal Health and Pet Care Industries

Providing a complete range of consulting services, including:
  > General Management Consulting
  > Technology Market Evaluation
  > Technology Transfer, Licensing, and Acquisition
  > Mergers, Acquisitions, Divestitures
  > Industry Information and Market Research
  > Executive and Managerial Search
  > Marketing and Communications Audits
  > Veterinary Practice Management
  > Syndicated Market Studies
  > Veterinary Market Research Panels

* Headquartered in Dallas, TX (972) 243-4033
* Other US Offices in Kansas City, Chicago, Asheville NC, & Charleston SC
* International Offices in Munich, Osaka & Sydney

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BRAKKE 2001 INDUSTRY OVERVIEW HAS LIMITED SEATING LEFT

NAVC is just 10 days away – have you reserved your seat at Brakke Consulting’s 2001 Overview?  This highly popular overview of the animal health industry has only a few seats still available.  This year’s overview will include an expanded section on Brakke’s view of the future of the industry. To register, contact Roger Cummings at (972) 243-4033 or mailto:rcummings@brakkeconsulting.com.  You may also register online at our homepage at www.brakkeconsulting.com, by clicking on the link beneath the world map.

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Animal Health News

>  UK Pig farmers were given some New Year cheer by the news that government vets have lifted all movement restrictions in areas affected by an outbreak of swine fever. The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food’s decision to sound the all-clear signals the end of a four-month nightmare that has cost the pig farming industry millions of pounds and brought many producers to the edge of ruin. Some movement restrictions remained on individual farms in East Anglia and warned farmers to stay on their guard. (AnimalNet – The Scotsman)

>  Scientists with the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) have completed a pilot project where they deciphered segments of cattle and swine genes, paving the way for technologies that will help livestock breeders to quickly and accurately identify animals with superior qualities. The research also may advance biomedicine. The scientists at the U.S. Meat Animal Research Center (MARC) deciphered sequence information on 80,000 DNA segments, called expressed sequence tags (ESTs), from cattle and 40,000 from swine. The cattle and swine ESTs, in essence, represent significant parts of genes that determine the proteins produced by certain tissues, such as muscle, ovary and hormone-producing glands. In additional research conducted on the same DNA segments, MARC scientists produced clonal “libraries” of expressed genes from a variety of tissues important to livestock growth, composition, reproduction, animal health and food safety. The information currently is accessible through the databases at the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI). (AgWeb)

>  NorthStar Cooperative Inc., an organization owned by midwestern beef and dairy producers in Lansing, Mich., has opened Antel BioSystems Inc. to provide a comprehensive menu of Johne’s disease testing services. Officials said AntelBio researchers, using advanced technology and genetic sequencing specific to Johne’s disease detection, developed a nucleic acid amplification procedure that can deliver initial test results to producers within 72 hours. (AnimalNet – Feedstuffs)

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Agribusiness News

>  A new study released by the University of Guelph estimates that the economic impact associated with mandatory labeling of biotech-enhanced foods in Canada potentially could increase retail food costs by 9 – 10%. The study noted that the increased retail food costs were attributable primarily to increased handling, testing and documentation requirements associated with segregation and identity-preservation of biotech versus conventional grain and oilseeds to validate labeling claims.  The study was conducted with the financial support of various agribusiness interests in Canada. (E-markets)

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Brakke Consulting Viewpoint
 
How does animal health management succeed in an environment of uncertainty?  This is the title of our 2001 Animal Health Industry Overview.  As we reflect on 2000 and implement plans for 2001, we’re reminded constantly that, in most cases, we do not control our own destiny. This would be a simpler business if we did not have changing regulatory issues, consumers wanting a safer food supply, and shifting environmental issues.  It would also help to have senior management that would accept budgets and forecasts consistent with animal industry growth.

We believe that our third-party insights and views on the current state and future of the industry are worth a couple of hours of your time.  See you at one of our overview sessions in Orlando or Las Vegas.

[Ron Brakke]
 
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