Re: ZTIES? and return from Atlanta
in response to
by
posted on
Jan 27, 2008 12:35PM
Justfartin,
I am catching up on Agoracom and want to respond to your post. I will do so after I talk about the show.
First, I had a busy time at the International Poultry Show in Atlanta. BioAgra's booth was well visited. With this being the third year of BioAgra's exhibiting at the show, the word is spreading far and wide in the industry and both USA and global players are paying attention.
The booth was staffed by five members of BioAgra, including Sean who is their leading sales manager. He has been joined in the past two weeks by an assistant sales person. A friend of VytaCorp was also in attendance. Another sales person who is an independent distributor was present. I was present as an interested shareholder. Paul had to stay in Denver and we missed his presence at the show.
The inroads they have made to get the word out is vastly encouraging. They have had to face a number of hurdles in the past year and have tackled each of them and taken care of them.
Zties indicated one hurdle which is a biggy. Agrastim must be administered precisely and is very effective when so administered. Educating testing companies and universities is ongoing and getting the right premix and premix ratio is/was constantly a focus. The marketing group and Dr. Sorgente is kept busy with the multitude of trials, answering questions, working with problems, and getting results.
And, as we have seen recently, the results are very positive. There are far more trials in process and a number have been concluded. The exact numbers and who with are kept confidential as part of respectful business practices. Some are able to be published and are found on BioAgra's website.
A minor hurdle (which was major at the time) was on one of the production runs, a vat started spewing out foam during one of the intermediate stages. After cleanup, they had to analyze why and what happened. A minor change in piping resulted in the solving of the problem. They told me how the smell permeated the building and I can believe them. Last September I was there when they were doing a run and putting the yeast in and it smelled a 1000 times more than a bread bakery. I like a bakery smell but 1000 times that is a bit to much.
All present at the show feel that 2008 should be our banner year and our major come out year. Some of us feel that this calendar quarter should see us either close to break even sales or cash flow positive. Indications are such that this looks to happen but we are cautious in that in business, the consumer dictates when (with healthy sales assistance of course).
I am confident in the sales staff and production staff of BioAgra, along with the independent distributor. I feel that they will generate significant sales and our production will need to expand.
Now, Justfartin, I am addressing your points/questions and they may or may not be in order of your post.
As to knowing who Zties is, the anonymity of AgoraCom protects those that do not wish to use their real names. There are a number of posters here that I am curious about but I respect their desire for privacy. What any one can do and only do is judge the content of their posts and make up their own minds.
As to how many shares any shareholder holds, that is also a private matter. The SEC only requires officers and board members to disclose in 10K their holdings (some other filings such as 424 and 8K have that disclosure as well). The exception is that the SEC requires the disclosure of beneficial holders of 10% or greater through the filing of a 13G. For example, I am a large holder but since you have not seen me file a 13G, you know that I do not hold 10% or more of the outstanding shares (3.2 million shares or more).
Sean Register works for himself and is VP of Marketing for BioAgra. He is commission only. He is not a competitor. I got to know him far better at this show than I had in previous visits and shows. I respect him and enjoyed his company.
VytaCorp files 10Q every quarter and files 10K (annual report) at the end of September (usually they file an extension and get it out by Oct 15). The fiscal year end for VytaCorp is June 30. They have 45 days to get the 10Q out for the previous quarter and 90 days to get the 10K out for the fiscal year.
The past 10K for dated Oct 15, 2007 is audited and contains the auditors statement. The auditor is GHP HORWATH, P.C.
I have talked with Paul regarding audited financials and all annual reports will be audited. It is expensive but necessary especially with everyone's strong belief that we will move someday to either the Nasdaq or NYSE (I have pushed for Nasdaq).
You asked about sales and I believe I have addressed that above.
VytaCorp has made more than two substantial loans to BioAgra. As I stated several weeks ago, VytaCorp has supported BioAgra since the beginning. When will BioAgra be able to start paying VytaCorp back? When revenue exceeds monthly expenses and capital expansion unless that capital expansion is funded through other mechanisms. I hope that VytaCorp will start seeing a return on its investment this year as well as having the several millions of dollars extended to BioAgra paid back.
BioAgra's product is ready to sell NOW and has been ready for over a year. That is the only way that the product has been able to get to consumer and university trials.
Hope I cleared up some points and questions.
Kent