BLIS Technologies Strategy Endorsed
30 August 2013
BLIS Technologies Strategy Endorsed
BLIS Technologies (“BLT” or the “Company”) shareholders ratified the capital raising initiatives supporting its business development strategy at the Annual Shareholders Meeting in Dunedin today.
The shareholders endorsed the placement of 300m shares to parties that will include the existing major shareholder Edinburgh Equity Nominees Limited and new trade investors Asian Pacific Partners Limited (“APPL”) and NZPR Group and associated interests (“NZPR”). The placement at 1 cent per share will raise up to $3 million, with subscriptions for $2.2m already held by the Company. Independent of the placement, shareholders will have the right to apply for up to $15,000 of shares at no more than 1 cent per share pursuant to a Share Purchase Plan to be conducted later this year for up to 150 million shares. These initiatives which together are expected to raise $3.5-$4.5 million will support the commercialisation of its products in New Zealand and international markets.
The Company emphasised to shareholders the significance of strategic alliances with APPL and NZPR, now strengthened through equity participation. BLIS is collaborating with APPL to identify and develop specific applications for finished retail products and nutritional formulations in Asia and the Middle East. NZPR played a critical role in obtaining approval for BLIS K12TM as a food ingredient in China. NZPR is now building the infrastructure in China to distribute BLIS products and recently reached a major milestone with the appointment of Sinopharm to market oral health products containing BLIS’s probiotics.
Shareholders were advised that in the first four months of the 2014 financial year the Company met its budgeted trading contribution on revenues of $560K (48% of total sales revenue for 2013 FY). This reflected increased ingredient sales in Japan and Europe and a significant increase in New Zealand retail and web based sales. As outlined in the Appraisal Report supporting the capital raising, an operating loss was still anticipated in the 2014 financial year.
Shareholders were advised that other than a delay to the commissioning of the nutritional formulations plant, business development in the current year was in line with expectations. The plant is expected to be commissioned in September with approvals then sought for export of product. The Company will in conjunction with third parties produce and market milk based formulations mainly for Asian markets. These nutritional formulations will include beverages with BLIS K12TM and BLIS M18TM ingredients providing functional foods with BLIS trademarks.
Other developments supported by BLIS included the introduction by our New Zealand distributors of a new blister pack format for BLIS K12TM lozenges to New Zealand pharmacies and the release of companion animal health care product containing BLIS K12TM in Japan.
Although the Company has yet to achieve profitable operations shareholders were advised that upon completion of the capital raising initiatives it will have the capital base necessary to support its strategy of pursuing global ingredient sales in conjunction with its primary distributor Novus Nutrition Brands and the parallel implementation of consumer oral product strategies with its trade partners including Asia Pacific Partners Ltd, NZPR Group and others. These strategies will continue to be supported by investment in the underlying science of its proprietary probiotic strains and regulatory approval processes and are expected to deliver profitable operations in the foreseeable future.
ENDS