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Brakke Consulting’s
Animal Health News & Notes for May 6, 2022
Copyright © Brakke Consulting
Editor: Lynn Fondon DVM MBA
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Welcome to the new version of Animal Health News & Notes. In addition to the new platform, we’ve added a couple of enhancements to make navigating the newsletter easier. First, clicking on a company’s name in the top section of the report will take you directly to the news item for that company. Second, we’ve added links to the original sources for each news item (where possible). Please note that some of the links will be to articles behind paywalls.
We hope you enjoy the changes we’ve made. Thanks again for being a subscriber!
Lynn Fondon
IN THE NEWS:
Brakke Consulting News
Equine MegaStudy V – early-order deadline extended to May 13
Earnings News
Central Garden & Pet
FreshPet
Hill’s
IDEXX
PetIQ
Phibro
Pilgrim’s Pride
Royal DSM
Trupanion
Wag!
Zoetis
Other News
ADM
Amlan International
BASF
Butterfly Network
Cloudfarms
Correlation One Holdings.
Dechra
Decoy
Farmabase
Gnubiotics Sciences
Hallmarq
Hill’s (Nutriamo)
Hill’s (Vet-AI)
Merck
Norbrook
Nutriamo
Oil-Dri
Petco
Pulse NeedleFree Systems
SP Ventures
Vet-AI
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Brakke Consulting
EQUINE MEGA STUDY V
EARLY-ORDER DEADLINE EXTENDED TO MAY 13
How has horse ownership and spending changed in the past 5 years? Find out in the fifth edition of the Equine Market MegaStudy. The study will be fielded in May with reports available in August 2022.
This highly popular survey includes over 450 brands of equine products in 20 categories. The study also measures readership of equine publications, catalogs and websites, and provides a wealth of information on horse owner demographics and segments.
The cost of the report is $17,500; orders placed by May 13 will receive a $1,500 discount. For more information, or to order a study, contact project manager Lynn Fondon at LFondon@brakkeconsulting.com or 336-396-3916.
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EARNINGS NEWS RELEASES
- Zoetis reported its financial results for the first quarter of 2022. Revenue was $1.986 billion, an increase of 6% compared with the first quarter of 2021 (+9% excluding the impact of foreign currency). Net income was $595 million, an increase of 6% on a reported basis. Revenue in the US segment was $1.020 billion, an increase of 9% compared with the first quarter of 2021. (company press release)
- IDEXX Laboratories announced results for the first quarter of 2022. Revenues were $837 million, an 8% increase from the prior-year quarter. Net income was $194 million, a decline of 5%. Companion Animal Group (CAG) revenues for the quarter were $761 million, an increase of 10%; CAG income from operations was $223 million, an increase of 5%. (company press release)
- Colgate-Palmolive Company reported results for first quarter 2022. Revenues for Hill’s Pet Nutrition were $872 million, an increase of 11% from the prior-year quarter. Division operating profit was $204 million, a decline of 5%. (company press release)
- Phibro Animal Health Corporation announced financial results for its third quarter ended March 31, 2022. Animal Health net sales were $149 million, a year-over-year increase of 11%. Net sales of MFAs and other increased 7%; net sales of nutritional specialty products increased 12%; and net sales of vaccines increased 21%. (company press release)
- PetIQ, Inc. reported financial results for the first quarter of 2022. Net sales were $276 million, an increase of 8%. Product segment net sales were $248 million, an increase of 8%; services segment net revenues were $28 million, an increase of 15%. Net income increased 32% to $3.2 million. (company press release)
- Freshpet, reported financial results the first quarter of 2022. Net sales were $132 million, an increase of 42% over the prior-year quarter. Net loss was $(17.5) million, compared with prior year net loss of $(10.9) million. (company website)
- Central Garden & Pet Company announced financial results for its fiscal 2022 second quarter ended March 26, 2022. Net sales for the Pet segment increased 1% to $498 million. Pet segment operating income decreased 2% to $61 million. (company press release)
- Trupanion, announced financial results for the first quarter of 2022. Total revenue was $206 million, an increase of 33% compared to the first quarter of 2021. Total enrolled pets was 1,267,253 at March 31, 2022, an increase of 34%. Net loss was $(8.9) million compared to net loss of $(12.4) million in the first quarter of 2021. (company press release)
- Royal DSM reported results for the first quarter of 2022. The animal nutrition and health business recorded sales of EUR 881 million ($927 million), an increase of 13% (+8% on an organic basis). (IHS Markit Connect subscription)
- Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation reported results for the first quarter of 2022. Net Sales were $4.24 billion, up nearly 30% from prior year. GAAP net income was $281 million. (Feedstuffs subscription)
- Wag! announced results for the first quarter of 2022. Gross bookings of the pet services marketplace increased by 141% to $17.5 million. Net loss improved to $(2.4) million from $(2.7) million in the first quarter of 2021. (GlobalPets)
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COMPANY NEWS RELEASES
- Merck Animal Health announced the launch of Hyper InfusiO2n technology to supply dissolved oxygen through fish passageways at barriers that impact fish populations as they migrate to their native habitats annually to reproduce. Merck is working with hydropower and energy companies to deploy its Hyper InfusiO2n oxygen injection technology, which deliver oxygen directly into water for immediate respiration. (IHS Markit Connect subscription)
- Norbrook announced the launch of Midamox (generic imidacloprid and moxidectin topical solution) for dogs and cats. (Vet Advantage)
- Dechra Veterinary Products announced that its Vetradent Liquid Water Additive has received the seal of acceptance to Help Control Tartar from the Veterinary Oral Health Council (VOHC). The Vetradent Liquid Water Additive is part of Vetradent’s full at-home dental care line, which are all produced with patent-pending Biotrate technology. (company website)
- Pulse NeedleFree Systems introduced the Pulse FX product line, which according to the company is the world’s first disposable line of needle-free livestock vaccination devices. The Pulse FX offers pork producers the health and food safety benefits of needle-free at a cost comparable to conventional syringes and needles. (company press release)
- ADM and Gnubiotics Sciences SA announce that the two companies have entered into a partnership agreement centered on the discovery and commercialization of a range of innovative microbiome solutions for companion animal health and wellbeing. (Petfood Industry)
- Hallmarq Veterinary Imaging announced that its 1.5T Small Animal MRI is now in service at Oahu, Hawaii-based Veterinary Emergency and Referral Center (VERC), part of the Ethos Veterinary Health network. The installation is the first MRI of its kind in Hawaii. (company press release)
- Amlan International, the animal health business of Oil-Dri Corporation of America, has launched two new natural products — Phylox Feed and NeutraPath — that help optimize intestinal health and production economics in the absence of antibiotics. Phylox Feed is a natural alternative to anticoccidial drugs and vaccines; NeutraPath is a natural pathogen control product for antibiotic-free production. (Feedstuffs subscription)
- Butterfly Network, Inc. and Petco Health and Wellness Company, Inc. announced the parties have agreed to deploy Butterfly iQ+ Vet to Petco’s growing network of nearly 200 full-service veterinary hospitals at Petco pet care centers. (company press release)
- ITALY Hill’s Pet Nutrition announced the completed acquisition of the manufacturing facility of Nutriamo r.l., an Italy-based canned pet food manufacturer. The acquisition is Hill’s first canned plant facility in Europe. Financial terms were not disclosed. (PRNewswire)
- UK Vet-AI, developer of the Joii Pet Care app, announced investments from Hill’s Pet Nutrition and Correlation One Holdings. The latest round of investment will enable the business to further scale-up its operations. Terms were not disclosed. (com)
- EU Cloudfarms – a subsidiary of BASF Group – together with SUISAG, the service partner for Swiss pig producers and international genetics customers, introduced the “Pig Passport”, an application of its existing production management system that enables breeding farms, production farms and processors to register and analyze production data of each individual pig from birth to processing. (Feedstuffs subscription)
- BRAZIL Brazilian start-up Decoy announced it has received around R$9 million ($1.8 million) from SP Ventures and Farmabase to help it scale up operations. The company is focused on parasite control in both livestock and companion animals. Decoy said the funding will help it pursue domestic registration and commercialization of its lead product Decoy Bovinos, which targets the control of ticks in livestock and is scheduled for launch in early 2023. (IHS Markit Connect subscription)
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ANIMAL HEALTH STOCK PRICE TRACKER
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ANIMAL HEALTH NEWS
- US – CATTLE MARKET The latest USDA-NASS annual report on livestock income showed cash receipts for the sale of cattle and calves increased 16%, from $63.1 billion in 2020 to $72.9 billion in 2021. All cattle and calf marketings totaled 61.4 billion pounds in 2021, up 4% from 2020. (Feedstuffs subscription)
- US – AVIAN INFLUENZA The USDA announced that $263 million from the Commodity Credit Corporation will be transferred to the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) to help fight the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) virus. The funding allows APHIS to continue its work with state and local partners to identify and address cases of HPAI. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack previously approved the use of approximately $130 million in emergency funding in mid-March 2022. These funds have been used to address indemnity, diagnostics, field activities, and other emergency response costs. (Meat+Poultry)
- AFRICA – CATTLE RESEARCH Researchers from the Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health (CTLGH), Roslin Institute, the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and the University of Glasgow have identified a key region of DNA that enables some cattle to survive East Coast fever – also called theileriosis – a potentially devastating infection that kills one million animals each year and costs farmers $600 million, largely affecting smallholders in sub-Saharan Africa. The study was published in PLOS Genetics. (thecattlesite)
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BRAKKE CONSULTING VIEWPOINT
Later this month, scientists around the world will attend the 2022 Global African Swine Fever (ASF) Research Alliance (GARA) Scientific Meeting with the objective to increase our understanding of ASF, which has affected hundreds of millions of pigs in the last few years around the world, especially in Asia. However, science and technology alone are not enough without sensible policies from the government.
The countries of North America and Europe demonstrated decades ago that ASF and CSF can be eradicated with proper government policy and adequate scientific and technological tools. At both local and national levels, governments should develop and implement science-based animal disease outbreak emergency management policies that will encourage the full participation and support of pork producers, processors and consumers. These policies must consider:
- What will happen if the government does not adequately compensate swine producers for their loss due to ASF outbreaks?
- What is the best way to cull/dispose of thousands of pigs in a short period of time in a restricted area, considering animal welfare, economic and environmental impact, and technical feasibility?
- The negative impacts of biosafety measures such as disinfectants on environment, food safety, and human health should be carefully investigated.
Hopefully those attending the GARA meeting will be considering these issues as well as scientific issues and advances.
Jishu Shi and Bob Jones
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YOUR VIEW
Last week we asked you to pick one area that animal health companies should invest their research and development dollars and we received some very interesting results. The top answer was oncology, coming in at just over 20%. Three areas were rather similar, at 14%: pain management, infectious diseases, and diagnostics. The “other” responses, which totaled 18%, had some thought-provoking answers; among them, digitalization, sustainability, veterinary practice efficiency and wellbeing and regenerative medicine. Internal and external parasite control were each curiously at 6% – both are huge segments of the companion animal and livestock segments.
This week
This week, let’s follow up on parasite control, specifically, heartworms – I know I might be opening up a can of worms here, but let’s see what you say.
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