News Release: Digital Angel Corporation to Participate in Canadian Government-Funded National Electronic Cattle Identification Program
Digital Angel Corporation (Amex: DOC) announced today that the Company will immediately begin marketing its proprietary RFID (radiofrequency identification) tags and scanners to Canadian cattle farmers and ranchers due to the Canadian government's recently announced funding of a national electronic cattle identification program scheduled to be launched this fall. The Canadian government recently announced that, as part of the six-part, $488 (Canadian) million Canadian Agricultural Income Stabilization (CAIS) Program, farmers and ranchers throughout Canada will receive government funds to cover the costs of electronically tagging a portion of the 2004-2005 calf crop. Digital Angel is one of only four companies with government approved electronic RFID ear tags and scanners currently participating.
The Canadian government announced the newest steps in the CAIS program September 10 as part of a national initiative to revitalize the country's struggling beef industry which has been damaged since the spring of 2003 when the country experienced its first Mad Cow Disease scare. All of the world's largest beef importers, including Japan and the United States, have stopped buying Canadian beef and the nation's economy has been severely impacted.
Digital Angel, the pioneer in animal RFID products, offers a full line of its Destron Technologies cattle electronic identification products that were approved by the Canadian Cattle Identification Agency (CCIA) after four years of testing for retention, readability and overall functionality at feed lots and packing programs throughout Canada. Precise details of how the funds will be distributed and how the national identification program will be implemented will be announced later, but it is clear that Digital Angel will play an important role, said Chief Executive Officer Kevin McGrath.
"Thanks to the backing of the Canadian government, farmers and ranchers throughout Canada will have an almost immediate need for our products," McGrath said. "This is an exciting start to what ultimately will be a national cattle identification program and we are committed to working closely with the cattle producers in Canada to take this important step to help restore confidence in their beef industry. This is obviously a significant initiative for our Company, but more importantly it is a significant initiative for the beef industry all over Canada and for the nation's economy in general."
Canada had the vision several years ago to create the CCIA with the expressed purpose of implementing a national cattle identification program and quickly recognized that RFID would be an important element in its overall success. A database of the country's approximately 122,000 cattle producers, which has a total cattle inventory of 14.7 million head of cattle that produce approximately 3.6 million pounds of beef and beef products annually, is already in place.
About Digital Angel Corporation
Digital Angel Corporation develops and deploys sensor and communications technologies that enable rapid and accurate identification, location tracking, and condition monitoring of high-value assets. Applications for the Company's products include identification and monitoring of pets, fish and livestock through its patented implantable microchips; location tracking and message monitoring of vehicles and aircraft in remote locations through systems that integrate GPS and geosynchronous satellite communications; and monitoring of asset conditions such as temperature and movement, through advanced miniature sensors.
Digital Angel Corporation is majority-owned by Applied Digital (Nasdaq: ADSX). For more information about Digital Angel, please visit www.DigitalAngelCorp.com
Digital Angel Corporation (Amex: DOC) announced today that the Company will immediately begin marketing its proprietary RFID (radiofrequency identification) tags and scanners to Canadian cattle farmers and ranchers due to the Canadian government's recently announced funding of a national electronic cattle identification program scheduled to be launched this fall. The Canadian government recently announced that, as part of the six-part, $488 (Canadian) million Canadian Agricultural Income Stabilization (CAIS) Program, farmers and ranchers throughout Canada will receive government funds to cover the costs of electronically tagging a portion of the 2004-2005 calf crop. Digital Angel is one of only four companies with government approved electronic RFID ear tags and scanners currently participating.
The Canadian government announced the newest steps in the CAIS program September 10 as part of a national initiative to revitalize the country's struggling beef industry which has been damaged since the spring of 2003 when the country experienced its first Mad Cow Disease scare. All of the world's largest beef importers, including Japan and the United States, have stopped buying Canadian beef and the nation's economy has been severely impacted.
Digital Angel, the pioneer in animal RFID products, offers a full line of its Destron Technologies cattle electronic identification products that were approved by the Canadian Cattle Identification Agency (CCIA) after four years of testing for retention, readability and overall functionality at feed lots and packing programs throughout Canada. Precise details of how the funds will be distributed and how the national identification program will be implemented will be announced later, but it is clear that Digital Angel will play an important role, said Chief Executive Officer Kevin McGrath.
"Thanks to the backing of the Canadian government, farmers and ranchers throughout Canada will have an almost immediate need for our products," McGrath said. "This is an exciting start to what ultimately will be a national cattle identification program and we are committed to working closely with the cattle producers in Canada to take this important step to help restore confidence in their beef industry. This is obviously a significant initiative for our Company, but more importantly it is a significant initiative for the beef industry all over Canada and for the nation's economy in general."
Canada had the vision several years ago to create the CCIA with the expressed purpose of implementing a national cattle identification program and quickly recognized that RFID would be an important element in its overall success. A database of the country's approximately 122,000 cattle producers, which has a total cattle inventory of 14.7 million head of cattle that produce approximately 3.6 million pounds of beef and beef products annually, is already in place.
About Digital Angel Corporation
Digital Angel Corporation develops and deploys sensor and communications technologies that enable rapid and accurate identification, location tracking, and condition monitoring of high-value assets. Applications for the Company's products include identification and monitoring of pets, fish and livestock through its patented implantable microchips; location tracking and message monitoring of vehicles and aircraft in remote locations through systems that integrate GPS and geosynchronous satellite communications; and monitoring of asset conditions such as temperature and movement, through advanced miniature sensors.
Digital Angel Corporation is majority-owned by Applied Digital (Nasdaq: ADSX). For more information about Digital Angel, please visit www.DigitalAngelCorp.com
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