News - New member for Accura

Bernard Ross, CEO of Accura, commented "We are delighted that Alan is joining the Company. Alan brings a wealth of expertise in building strong veterinary pharmaceutical businesses. We believe Alan’s proven track record in the animal health industry and specifically the companion animal business will be invaluable as we bring our lead products to market over the next two years."

Alan Reade was previously the Executive Chairman and CEO of Merial Limited.

Merial, the joint venture between Merck & Company Inc. and the Sanofi-Aventis Group, is the second largest animal health company in the world with global sales of over $2 billion. Merial provides a comprehensive range of products to enhance the health and well-being of companion animals.

Under Alan's leadership the company's sales grew by 30% in a market that displayed, at that time, less than 2% annual growth. At the same time he was successful in establishing Merial as the undisputed leader in the high margin Companion Animal business with a market share increase from 16 to 23%.

Commenting on his appointment, Alan said, "Accura has found and is exploiting a vacuum that exists in the market for pharmaceutical products for companion animals. The large multinational pharmaceutical companies are, in many ways, missing the nearer to market opportunities. There are very many effective human pharmaceuticals that are appropriate for companion animals such as dogs and cats and the product pipeline that Accura currently has will enable them to occupy this space very efficiently. I will be working alongside the management team in developing the most effective routes to market; either through relationships with larger pharmaceutical sales and marketing organisations, or through Accura's own sales resources."

The Directors of the Issuer accept responsibility for this announcement.