Animal Health News & Notes for September 25, 2020

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Brakke Consulting’s
Animal Health News & Notes for September 25, 2020
Copyright © Brakke Consulting
Editor: Lynn Fondon DVM MBA
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IN THE NEWS:

Earnings News
General Mills
Neogen

Other News
ADM Animal Nutrition
Antech Diagnostics
Ascus Biosciences
Ceva
FarmInsect
Hemp Technology
Hester Biosciences
Ictyogroup
Native Microbials
Petc
Pharmasone
Pharmgate
THRIVE Affordable Vet Care
True Leaf
Vetoquinol
Virbac
Zoetis

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COMPANY EARNINGS RELEASES

• Neogen Corporation announced financial results for the first quarter of its 2021 fiscal year, which ended Aug. 31. Revenues were $109 million, an 8% increase compared to the previous year’s first quarter. Net income was $15.9 million, compared to $14.7 million in the previous year’s first quarter. The Animal Safety segment reported revenues of $55 million, an increase of 9% compared to the prior year first quarter. (company press release
• General Mills reported results for its fiscal first quarter ended August 30, 2020. First-quarter net sales for the Pet segment (Blue Buffalo) were $392 million, an increase of 6% from the prior-year quarter. Segment operating profit increased 12% to $90 million. (company website)

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COMPANY NEWS RELEASES

• Virbac announced it has acquired a range of autogenous tilapia vaccines from French biologicals developer Ictyogroup. The acquisition will allow Virbac to distribute and market a portfolio of registered autogenous vaccines in Africa, Asia and Latin America. The two companies have also signed an agreement for the development of new vaccines and formulations for tilapia. Financial terms were not disclosed. (IHS Markit Connect)
• Antech Diagnostics announced the availability of FastPanel Ringworm PCR, its DNA-based test for the most common fungal organisms causing ringworm in dogs, cats, horses, rabbits and small rodents. (PRNewswire)
• The FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine has approved Pharmasone LLC’s ZoaShield 25%, the first generic version of zoalene Type A medicated article for the prevention and control of coccidiosis in broiler chickens and growing turkeys and for the development of active immunity to coccidiosis in replacement chickens. (FDA)
• Pharmgate Animal Health announced the US launch of PRRSGard, a single-dose recombinant chimeric vaccine against porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS). (IHS Markit Connect)
• ADM Animal Nutrition announced the launch of Forage First GS, a new supplement formulated to provide nutritional support for equine gastrointestinal health during stressful events. Forage First GS utilizes a proprietary blend of minerals and high-quality ingredients to provide positive results for equines with gastric discomfort. (Equisearch.com)
• Ascus Biosciences announced it has been renamed Native Microbials as it launches what it claims are the world’s first endomicrobial products for animals. Native Microbials expects to soon launch its Galaxis livestock diet ingredient, which promotes fiber digestion and volatile fatty acid production, worldwide; the product has already been introduced in Argentina and Mexico. (IHS Markit Connect)
• Petco announced the opening of its 100th in-store veterinary hospital, located in Encinitas, California. The company has more than doubled the number of full-service vet hospitals located in its stores over the past year and expects to increase that momentum through the end of FY20. The Encinitas in-store hospital was opened in cooperation with Petco’s regional veterinary partner THRIVE Affordable Vet Care; other regional veterinary partners include Global Veterinary Partners (GVP), VetnCare and Vetco Total Care. (Pet Business)
• EU Zoetis announced it has gained a positive opinion from the European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Veterinary Use (CVMP) for Librela (bedinvetmab), a canine monoclonal antibody (mAb) targeting nerve growth factor (NGF),  for relief from OA-associated pain in dogs. Librela is designed to be administered once a month. (IHS Markit Connect)
• EU The European Medicine Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Veterinary Use (CVMP) has recommended marketing authorization for Vetoquinol‘s OvuGel, a vaginal gel for pigs containing triptorelin acetate indicated for the synchronization of ovulation in weaned sows to enable a single fixed-time artificial insemination. (IHS Markit Connect)
• EU Ceva announced that Forceris, its patented injectable combination product for the prevention of iron deficiency anemia and treatment of coccidiosis in piglets, will now be available to all European swine producers. (company press release)
• INDIA Hester Biosciences announced it has acquired technology that will allow it to develop a better Brucella abortus vaccine for cattle from the Indian Veterinary Research Institute for an undisclosed fee. It expects to launch the new vaccine in India within the next 18 months. (IHS Markit Connect)
• CANADA Hemp Technology announced it has acquired True Leaf Pet Inc. and all its assets, a brand of hemp- and CBD-infused pet products and a subsidiary of True Leaf Medicine International Ltd. The pet wellness brand was launched in the Canadian market in 2013; financial terms were not disclosed. (Globalpets)
• GERMANY FarmInsect has developed a technology to breed insect larvae as protein feed for farm animals. The company plans to start a pilot plant at one of the largest fish farms in Bavaria, Germany. The use of insect meal in aquaculture has been legally permitted in the European Union since the end of 2017, and approval for use in poultry and finishing pigs is expected in 2021. (Feedstuffs)

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ANIMAL HEALTH STOCK PRICE TRACKER

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ANIMAL HEALTH NEWS

• US – CONFERENCES The American Association of Bovine Practitioners (AABP) announced that it is canceling the in-person portion of its annual conference this week and will move ahead solely with its planned virtual conference. AABP was set to hold its 53rd annual conference Sept. 24-26 as a hybrid event with in-person meetings in Louisville, Ky., but was informed of “potential civil unrest in the area due to an impending announcement of a court case.” AABP emphasized that it will move forward with the virtual conference. (Feedstuffs)
• US – VETERINARY SCHOOLS The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Council on Education (COE) has issued the Texas Tech University School of Veterinary Medicine a Letter of Reasonable Assurance. This milestone allows the school to begin the application process to admit its inaugural class. With this achievement, the school remains on track, on time and on budget. The school will begin with an inaugural class of approximately 60 students in fall 2021. (Everythinglubbock.com)
• US – VETERINARY ACCREDITATION The American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) announced it will now offer an End-of-Life Care accreditation option for veterinary practices that focus on providing this type of care. Many of the standards developed by the task force are based on the 2016 AAHA/IAAHPC End-of-Life Care Guidelines. (association press release)
• US – CATTLE MARKET BILL The Cattle Market Transparency Act of 2020 has been introduced in the US Senate.  The Act would establish regional negotiated cash minimums and equip producers with more price information to assist them with their marketing decisions. It would require USDA to create and maintain a library of marketing contracts between packers and producers and require packers to supply this information to USDA. (Feedstuffs)

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BRAKKE CONSULTING VIEWPOINT
Recently three of my Brakke teammates and I presented our annual mid-year overview webinar on the animal health industry.  One thread running through the presentation was the resilience of our industry in an otherwise difficult six months for most other economic segments.

With that positive news still lingering, I read that the National Restaurant Association had released a study saying that 100,000 restaurants (1 in 6) had closed permanently in the U.S. since the onset of the pandemic, putting 3.0 million people out of work.  That left me feeling darn glad the veterinary profession and the animal health industry have endured, and in some cases, thrived the last eight months.  Thank you, innovative veterinarians and caring pet owners!

Cary Christensen

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YOUR VIEW
Last week, we asked you about your view on whether veterinarians will win back some of the sales they have lost to online retailers, or are those sales gone forever when the pandemic is over.  Just over 30% of you said, “No, those sales are gone forever” and about 10% said that they would get some sales back.  But almost 60% of you said that maybe those sales will come back, but veterinarians will need to improve their customer experience on their own online clinic ordering platform.  We agree.

This week
This week let’s turn to the livestock side of the animal health business and the challenges it faces in the future in terms of meat protein consumption.

What do you think will be the biggest challenge facing the US meat protein production industry?