Tasker Products Receives Purchase Orders For Both Its Poultry Processing And Seafood Applications From New Customers

Danbury, CT - Tasker Products Corp., a distributor and marketer of proprietary technology effective in inhibiting pathogenic bacteria, recently reported that it has received a new purchase order for its Tasker Blue poultry processing Scalder application from a plant of one of the nation's largest poultry processors. The receipt of the order follows a series of test conducted by Tasker of its application at one of the new customer's plants during which it was determined that the use of Tasker Blue not only destroyed bacteria, such as Salmonella and E. coli, in the Scalder, but also improved the final yield. The Company also reported that it has started shipping its seafood application, Pacific Blue, to one of the nation's leading producers of farm raised catfish, a new customer.

These tests, which were monitored by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), indicated that Tasker Blue was effective at materially reducing bacteria at temperatures 10-15 percent lower than industry standards and, as a result, increased yields (the final wholesale weight of the birds) by approximately 0.75 percent. Relative to the aggregate poultry production in the United States of over 50 billion pounds per year, a yield increase of this magnitude is a material discovery.

The Company also noted that it has begun testing an application for use in the Chiller section of poultry processing. Upon the successful completion of these tests, Tasker will have applications for four of the six intervention points. Recently, the USDA announced that it was reconsidering the role of Online Re-Processing as an intervention point, which may eliminate or significantly reduce its function in poultry processing. As a result, Tasker suspended its tests of an application designed for the OLR pending the decision by the USDA. As the Company noted during its third quarter conference call, it has increased the capacity of its plant in Conroe, Texas to accommodate up to 56 poultry facilities, based on an average use of 300 gallons of Tasker Blue per day, from its previous level of 11.

Lanny Dacus, Tasker's president and CEO, commented on the new customer purchase order, "The test results of Tasker Blue were compelling. In addition to significantly reducing bacteria in the Scalder, the test confirmed that it remained highly effective at eliminating bacterial at temperatures much lower than the industry norm. Not only does this reduce energy costs, but it resulted in higher overall poultry yields." Mr. Dacus continued, "The addition of Tasker's application in the Chiller section will provide processors with both front-end and back-end solutions that will support water recycling, which is a significant component of processing costs, since up to 10 gallons of water per bird can be used in the operation. The receipt of a purchase order from this new customer of Tasker Products is an important milestone in the products commercialization."

Greg Osborn, Tasker's executive chairman, added, "In addition to the progress being made with the commercialization of our poultry processing application, Pacific Blue, our seafood application, is gradually gaining recognition from the retail and wholesale seafood industries. Similar to the growth patterns achieved with Tasker's Footbath, the application is a developing product in which its effectiveness in inhibiting bacteria and extending the duration of the merchandises' freshness has caught the attention of seafood professionals who are participating in the products commercial development. As the technology continues to prove itself, its efficacy is providing an impetus to the proliferation of new and expanded applications."

SOURCE: Tasker Products