Positive Data on Sow Trial

Ocean Harvest Technology Group PLC

08 August 2024

 

8 August 2024

Ocean Harvest Technology Group plc

("OHT", the "Company", or the "Group")

Positive data on Sow trial- 5% profitability improvement for customers using OceanFeed Swine. Ocean Harvest Technology Group plc (AIM: OHT), a leading researcher, developer and supplier of proprietary blended seaweed products as functional additives for the global animal feed industry, reports findings of significant benefits from the inclusion of its OceanFeed Swine in Sow diets.

Summary:

·      A commercial scale trial at a dedicated research facility of one of OHT's customers has demonstrated that the inclusion of OceanFeed Swine in the diets of pregnant sows has these benefits:

-  increased the number of piglets born and piglets born alive by 3% and 3.2%, respectively

-  increased Sow body weight before and after giving birth, improving their resilience

-  improved milk quality in the first day after birth, which is key to improving the health of the new born piglets

·      These results delivered additional revenue of over $24 per Sow per year under current economic conditions, which OHT believes results in an approximate 5% improvement in profit per sow for the groups of sow farming customers it is targeting.

·      Management estimate that over $100 billion is spent per annum on feed for Swine and that the opportunity to sell into sows is roughly double the opportunity to sell into piglets.  Sales of OceanFeed Swine into piglets represented circa €750,000 of revenue in 2023, showing the substantial growth potential from the commercial application of these results.

The Trial and Results

OHT scoped and funded the trial which involved over 800 sows at the commercial research facility of one of its larger customers, designed to demonstrate the benefits of including OceanFeed Swine in the diets as compared to a standard commercial control diet without OceanFeed Swine.  The diets were fed for the duration of the gestation and lactation periods.

OceanFeed Swine increased the number of piglets born and the number of piglets born alive compared with the control diet by 3 and 3.2%, respectively.  In addition, the sows supplemented with OFS were heavier at farrowing and weaning compared with sows fed the control diet, and milk quality in the first day after birth was higher in sows fed OFS compared with those fed the control diet.

Commercial Opportunity

The trial resulted in an additional $24 profit per sow from those with OceanFeed Swine included in their diets.  This represents a circa 5% profitability improvement for Sow farmers with the profitability profile of the customers OHT is targeting.

OHT believes its opportunity to sell OceanFeed into Sows is roughly double that of its addressable market in nursery piglets.  This is because sows in commercial activity are typically pregnant for approximately 41 weeks of each year and consume materially greater volumes of feed than nursery piglets which have smaller diets fed to them for approximately 18 weeks.  OHT's piglet sales have been successful for many years and were approximately €750,000, in 2023, hence the larger Sow market is a substantial growth opportunity for OHT.

Mark Williams, CEO of Ocean Harvest Technology Group, commented:

"The performance benefits resulting in a profitability improvement of roughly 5% for the producer in this trial presents OHT with a significant ability to grow its swine business.  OHT has been demonstrating for some time how the significant growth, health and performance benefits that its OceanFeed Swine product has when included in the diets of nursery pigs and this commercial-scale trial demonstrates that these health benefits also lead to real commercial benefits in pregnant sows.  We believe that this roughly triples OHT's addressable market for its OceanFeed Swine product."

For more information please contact:

Ocean Harvest Technology Group plc	Tel: [phone]
Mark Williams, CEO Chris Scott, CFO
Cavendish Capital Markets Ltd (Nominated Adviser and Sole Broker)	Tel: [phone]
Geoff Nash / Seamus Fricker / George Dollemore (Corporate Finance) Tim Redfern / Harriet Ward (ECM)

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Notes to Editors

Ocean Harvest Technology Group plc is a global leader in the development and commercialisation of value adding proprietary products from blending multiple species of seaweed. The Company provides a range of natural additives focused on improving animal performance and the sustainability of the feed chain, through its unique and proven proprietary seaweed blends. The Company sources its seaweed globally, utilising sustainable and socially responsible harvesting of largely wild blooming seaweed species.  Its products are produced in its facility in Vietnam and sold into the $40bn animal feed additive sector in multiple markets across the world.

For more information, please visit www.oceanharvesttechnology.com.

 

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