Animal Health News & Notes for March 9, 2012

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Brakke Consulting’s
Animal Health News & Notes for March 9, 2012
Copyright © Brakke Consulting, Inc.
 
Editor: Lynn Fondon, DVM MBA
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IN THE NEWS:
 
Brakke news
Pain Management Study
 
earnings news
Ceva
Smithfield
 
other news
Genesis
IAMS
Kemin
Novartis
Pfizer
Vital Animal Health
 
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BRAKKE CONSULTING, INC.
COMING IN APRIL:
2012 PAIN MANAGEMENT PRODUCTS REPORT
 
Pain management is one of the leading topics in veterinary medicine today.  Brakke Consulting’s annual report on Pain Management Products for Dogs and Cats includes such valuable information as:
  – overview of acute and chronic pain in small animals
  – review of current products
  – estimates of US sales and prices of leading products
  – pain management products in development
  – review of nutritional supplements used for chronic pain
  – review of therapeutic diets for joint care
  – 2012 survey of 200 small animal veterinarians regarding use of pain management products
 
Pain Management Products for Dogs and Cats 2012 can be purchased for $4,995 if ordered by March 30, 2012.  The report will be completed in early April.  Questions about the study can be answered by project manager Lynn Fondon, DVM, MBA at 972-243-4033, or email Lfondon@brakkeconsulting.com
 
www.BrakkeConsulting.com
 
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COMPANY EARNINGS RELEASES
 
> Ceva Santé Animale reported results for 2011.  Net annual sales were EUR 530 million ($700 million), an increase of 13% compared to the prior year. (company press release)
 
> Smithfield Foods Inc. reported results for its fiscal 2012 third quarter ended January 29. The company reported net earnings of $79 million on sales that totaled $3.478 billion, compared with earnings of $203 million on sales of $3.186 billion the year before. Smithfield said all business segments had higher sales for the quarter, although operating profits were down across all units, and hog production took a loss for the quarter. (Feedstuffs) 
 
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ANIMAL AGRICULTURE ALLIANCE
11th ANNUAL STAKEHOLDERS SUMMIT
MAY 2-3, 2012
 
Early registration is now available for the Animal Agriculture Alliance’s eleventh annual Stakeholders Summit, to be held May 2-3 in Arlington, VA. This year, the Alliance’s showcase event will explore the theme of “Real Farmers Real Food: Celebrating Tradition and Technology”.
 
For more details or to register, go to http://beta.eventfarm.com/StakeholdersSummit2012.
 
www.AnimalAgAlliance.org
 
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COMPANY NEWS RELEASES
 
> According to the Wall Street Journal, Novartis has made a preliminary offer for Pfizer’s animal health business, which was turned down by Pfizer as too low.  Despite interest on the part of Novartis and other companies, Pfizer is said to be still considering a spinoff of the animal health division because of the large tax bill and antitrust issues an outright sale would trigger. (Wall Street Journal)
 
> Kemin Industries Inc. announced it has acquired Genesis, a companion animal supplement company and maker of the veterinary-exclusive health supplement brand Resources. The Resources brand includes supplements for immune and urinary support as well as joint and general wellness products. Financial terms were not disclosed. (Pets International)
 
> Vital Animal Health, LLC announced it has completed the acquisition of the Calm Coat brand and line of products. Calm Coat products are developed for a variety of therapeutic, animal health skin care issues using all natural ingredients, as often as possible. Financial terms were not disclosed. (company press release)
 
> IAMS introduced Senior Plus diets, available for dogs and cats in the ProActive Health and Premium Protection formulas, to specifically address the unique needs of pets age 11 and older. IAMS Senior Plus at pet specialty stores, mass retailers and grocers. (Business Wire)
 
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ANIMAL HEALTH NEWS
 
> US – VETERINARY EDUCATION   Midwestern University in Arizona announced it will open a veterinary school in 2014.  The university will spend $90 million to build an academic center as well as clinics for large and small animals, and plans to have a class size of 100 students. (Tucson Citizen)
 
>  US – BIOLOGICALS RESEARCH   The University of Wyoming and university spinout company GlycoBac LLC have signed an agreement to commercialize research using genetically engineered insect cells for manufacturing vaccines, diagnostics or therapeutics for use in human and veterinary medicine. (Feedstuffs)
 
> US – HUMAN ANIMAL BOND  The Human-Animal Bond Research Initiative (HABRI) announced the launch of HABRI Central, an online resource for those involved in studies of the human-animal bond. HABRI Central is made possible by The Human-Animal Bond Research Initiative Foundation (HABRI) in collaboration with the Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine and Purdue Libraries. (PRNewswire)
 
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BRAKKE CONSULTING VIEWPOINT
 
Though the newsletter is brief this week, it has some interesting announcements or articles to ponder. For those of you who believe there will be a shortage of veterinarians in a few years, you should be comforted to know that another veterinary school is being developed to address the concern.  With recently announced new veterinary schools and the increase of class sizes in the already established veterinary schools, veterinary education is well on its way to solving the perceived future shortage of veterinarians. We hope the decision to expand veterinary education is based on quality market supply and demand information.
 
We normally do not cover speculative stories for the industry in this newsletter, but felt that the Wall Street Journal article regarding the offer by Novartis for Pfizer’s Animal Health business needed to be mentioned. We continue to believe that the most likely outcome will be a spin-off of the division by Pfizer at some later date. 
 
The other item we want to mention is to encourage those interested in animal agriculture to have one or more managers attend the annual Animal Agriculture Alliance in early May. This organization continues to grow and has become a leading advocate for animal agriculture. It deserves your support!!
 
Have a great weekend!!
 
Ron Brakke
 
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Brakke Consulting, Inc.
12005 Ford Rd., Suite 530
Dallas, TX  75234    USA