Press Release

Industry Leading Individual Data Collection and Information Transfer System Granted US Patent Numbers

AgInfoLink Global Inc. has been granted Patent numbers 6,346,885 and 6,342,839 from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for The “Method and Apparatus For a Livestock Data Collection and Management System”. The patent broadly provides for the tracking for individual animals from the farm to the table and specifically includes claims for:

• Individual animal identification,
• Event data collection with radio frequency identification work cards,
• BeefLink® software -- chute site individual animal data collection,
• Pony Express Relay Database™ -- the sharing of individual data among past and future owners of the animals, and distributed databases to store the information needed to interface with other software management systems at each stage of production.

For nearly five years, AgInfoLink has worked on the cutting edge, bringing individual animal data collection and information sharing solutions to the livestock industry. AgInfoLink’s chute-side data collection software, BeefLink®, has automated the data collection process making producers more efficient and profitable. AgInfoLink’s Pony Express Relay Database™ has also automated the sharing of individual animal information from one owner to another throughout the entire supply chain across multiple software platforms. Data recorded at the ranch level can be passed up and down the supply chain between stocker owner, feedyard, packer, distributor, retailer and consumer.

Having data move from farm to table and back allows all players in the supply chain to see the result of their efforts after the animal leaves their control. Sharing information from different third-party software packages operating at each stage of production allows the creation of virtual, vertical supply chains for the food industry. The patents issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark office cover both individual animal data collection and data sharing about individual animals from one segment of the production chain to another.

According to Mark Armentrout, AgInfoLink’s Chief Operating Officer, “AgInfoLink Global Inc. will continue working to connect the livestock industry through data collection and sharing. Many industry experts see our patented information highway as the standard by which all production data will be shared regardless of the software used to collect it. We see our future as the information bridge allowing all segments of the industry to quickly and easily pass information back and forth.”

Working in partnership with existing technology companies, AgInfoLink is building the infrastructure used to share production data between software packages and across industry segments. Armentrout continues, “This isn’t a project for a single company, but rather an industry-wide commitment to cooperation so that we may all garner the benefits of information collection and sharing.”

Now with over 1.5 million animals on the AgInfoLink system, there is little doubt that collecting and analyzing individual animal data is a powerful management tool. However, the real value in individual management is achieved when data is added to the animal record from all food production segments. The food production chain, including the producer, can benefit from increased efficiency and by offering consumers safer, high quality food. AgInfoLink provides the highway that connects and adds value to the food chain.