Digital Angel Corporation Partners With VeriPrime, Inc., and Other Industry Leaders in Launching a New Era of Food Safety, Quality and Security
9/17/2003 2:55:00 PM
SOUTH ST. PAUL, Minn., Sep 17, 2003 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Digital Angel Corporation (DOC) today announced that VeriPrime, Inc., a partner of its Animal Applications unit (formerly Destron-Fearing Corporation) has launched a new era of food safety, quality and security.
At a news conference held earlier today at the Dirksen Senate Office Building in Washington, D.C. and attended by government officials, VeriPrime, Inc., Burger King Corp., Swift & Co., ConAgra Cattle Feeding Co., Consolidated Beef Producers, and other food industry leaders launched the VeriPrime food safety system.
VeriPrime is a member-owned and member-directed food safety and food security organization providing a framework that brings together all segments of the industry in a way that enables improvement through cooperation without interfering with competition. VeriPrime is led by founder and CEO, Scott Crain, DVM. The initial focus will be on beef industry issues. These include improved E.coli protection, the beginning of a comprehensive animal identification and tracking system, verification of safeguards against cattle feed contamination and standards of animal welfare that exceed those now required by most grocery and restaurant chains.
Digital Angel is a leader in the U.S. animal identification market and is committed to help shape the future of the new industry. The Company is actively participating in the C.O.O.L. (Country-Of-Origin Labeling) program. Digital Angel Corporation has established business relationships and alliances with VeriPrime and other companies to maintain industry leadership in this newly evolving market.
Digital Angel Corporation's products and systems are uniquely positioned for this new industry. Its animal identification systems feature patented RFID implantable microchips, e.Tags(TM), scanning systems, global positioning, biosensors and software for frictionless data collection. Being computer- based, they facilitate more rapid isolation of diseased animals and expedite the removal of tainted product from distribution. The Company has been testing its most advanced products for livestock traceability in rigorous field trials with some of the United States' largest food processing companies.
In addition to being a valuable food safety verification tool, the computerized systems allow producers to automatically collect, report and store data on individual animals, personnel, and husbandry practices. Among the specific benefits are: (1) individual animal quality and productivity reports; (2) inventory control and supply chain management; (3) herd health journals; (4) carcass-tracking; and (5) individual and farm labor efficiency reports.
The system also incorporates the latest in wireless technology, web-enabled PDAs and database design to provide utility and scalability. It provides "real-time" reports for immediate decisions, trend analyses and performance assessments.
The systems are an example of Digital Angel Corporation's ability to develop timely market driven products and systems utilizing its patented platform technologies in implantable microchips, wireless data management and sensors for innovative products to identify, locate and monitor people, animals and objects.
Earlier this year, the company announced U.S. FDA and USDA animal clearance to market Bio-Thermo(TM), an advanced implantable chip that measures the internal body temperature of livestock and dairy animals.
About Digital Angel Corporation
Digital Angel(TM) technology represents the first-ever combination of advanced sensors and Web-enabled wireless telecommunications linked to Global Positioning Systems (GPS). By utilizing advanced sensor capabilities, Digital Angel is able to monitor key functions -- such as ambient temperature and physical movement -- and transmit that data, along with accurate emergency location information, to a ground station or monitoring facility. The company also invented, manufactures and markets implantable identification microchips the size of a grain of rice for use in humans, companion pets, fish and livestock. Digital Angel Corp. owns the patents for its inventions in all applications of the implantable microchip technology for humans and animals. On March 27, 2002, Digital Angel Corporation completed a merger with Medical Advisory Systems, Inc., which for two decades has operated a 24/7, physician-staffed response center in Owings, Maryland. Applied Digital Solutions, Inc. (ADSX) is the majority owner of the company. For more information about Digital Angel Corp., visit www.DigitalAngelCorp.com.
Statements about the company's future expectations, including future revenues and earnings, and all other statements in this press release other than historical facts are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and as that term is defined in the Private Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties and are subject to change at any time, and the company's actual results could differ materially from expected results. The company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect subsequently occurring events or circumstances.
SOURCE Digital Angel Corporation; VeriPrime, Inc.
Investor Contact - Thomas Redington of Redington, Inc.,
+1-203-222-7399, tredington@redingtoninc.com,; or Media Contact - Matthew
Cossolotto of Ovations International, Inc., +1-914-245-9721,
matthew@ovations.com, both for Digital Angel Corporation
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