Last checked at 28 Apr 2010 07:00
28 April, 2010
Plant Health Care plc
("Plant Health Care" or "the Company")
Plant Health Care seeks patent for AirStrike performance programme
Plant Health Care (AIM: PHC), a leading provider of naturally derived products to the agriculture and landscape industries, announced today that it is seeking to patent the business methods surrounding its unique agricultural product sales process, trademarked as AirStrike™. Plant Health Care will make AirStrike available to crop protection companies, under license agreements.
AirStrike is based on Plant Health Care's proprietary and groundbreaking Computer Automated Spatial Analysis (CASA) technology which verifies the yield data collected during harvest with a high degree of precision, even in the presence of highly variable field conditions. It gives agrichem companies the opportunity to sell yield improving products to farmers on a "pay for performance" basis. On 22 March 2010 Plant Health Care announced an application to secure patent for its CASA technology, which is central to the AirStrike process. This announcement concerns the application to obtain a separate patent for the business methodology surrounding AirStrike.
The patent-pending CASA technology at the heart of AirStrike takes advantage of the systems farmers already use. By integrating GPS and spatial analysis technology, CASA records the results of the harvest and analyses the data in a fully automated way. Crucially, that means it is not reliant on either party to measure the results. Having automatically collated the results and applied the relevant performance benchmarks, it is clear whether the pre-agreed yield improvement has been achieved and whether payment is due.
John Brady, CEO of Plant Health Care said: "This could be very significant, industry wide. The CASA technology in combination with the AirStrike methodology gives agrichem companies the opportunity to use a pay for performance model that works for everyone. It demonstrates the absolute confidence they have in their products and it means farmers always get value for their money. It builds a true partnership between crop input providers and farmers."
"The ability to conduct this analysis on potentially millions of acres is the foundation upon which the AirStrike business method is built. It allows farmers and crop care providers to have confidence in the accuracy and validity of the data which ultimately determines whether the product delivers and should be paid for. This programme takes away a growers reason to say no. There isn't a fairer deal than pay for performance," Brady added.
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For further information, please contact:
| Plant Health Care plc |
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| John Brady, Chief Executive Officer |
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| Tel: +1-603-525-3702 |
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| jabrady@planthealthcare.com |
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| Evolution Securities | Tavistock Communications |
| Tim Worlledge / Tim Redfern | Jeremy Carey/Matt Ridsdale |
| Tel: +44-20-7071-4300 | Tel: +44-20-7920-3150 |
| tim.worlledge@evosecuties.com tim.redfern@evosecuties.com | jcarey@tavistock.co.uk mridsdale@tavistock.co.uk |
Notes to editors:
About Plant Health Care plc: Plant Health Care plc ("PHC") is a leading provider of naturally derived products for plants and soil. Established in 1995 in Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania) in the United States, PHC currently has approximately 90 employees and has operations in the United States, Mexico, the United Kingdom, Spain, and the Netherlands. The Company's ordinary shares have been quoted on the Alternative Investment Market ("AIM") of the London Stock Exchange since July 2004 and listed on the Official List of the Channel Islands Stock Exchange ("CISX") in February 2010 (ticker symbol/ mnemonic: PHC).
PHC's products are aimed at the agriculture and landscape industries and are environmentally beneficial. Through the commercialisation of these products, PHC is capitalising on current long-term trends toward natural systems and biological products for plant care and soil and water management. Further information is available at: www.planthealthcare.com.