PRESS RELEASE

Identity Preserved Crop Production
Gets Boost from new Company, Products

CHICAGO (Sept. 14, 2000) - Food companies, processors and producers anxious to take advantage of the potential of identity preservation got a boost today with the announcement of a new company, IdentityPreserved.com. As part of a national conference: The New IP Value-Added Agriculture: Developing the Infrastructure, Agricultural Information Technologies announced the formation of IdentityPreserved.com as a separate business unit to serve the identity preservation community.

"It's our goal to simplify and streamline the process of identifying and tracking valuable characteristics in crops and livestock," says Tim Aughenbaugh president of IdentityPreserved.com.

"Identity preservation will dominate agricultural product marketing in years to come," Aughenbaugh says. "Our vision of the future foresees a landscape of fields producing grain destined for specific markets, and grain bins filled with crops specially grown for a particular use."

Aughenbaugh sees a marketplace filled with new products derived from the distinct characteristics of specific lots of grain, and crops marketed based on their unique ability to satisfy specific customer needs.

"This vision is now becoming a reality," says Aughenbaugh. "Technology is giving us the ability to tear down barriers to identity preserved production. We believe that in the near future more than half the crops grown in this country will be identity preserved, and are working to help more people capture the value of identity preserved products."

Aughenbaugh believes that by increasing incentives to identify and track crop traits, the recent concerns about GMO food highlight the hidden potential of identity preservation. Segregated grain, besides having its unique qualities preserved, is also showing signs of generally higher overall quality since it never gets blended with other grain.

Aughenbaugh says many processing companies have not had the chance to use truly high-quality, consistent raw materials. As a result, they routinely experience production problems that result from changes in the constituents of the raw crop inputs. If those differences can be identified and managed, the production process will be more consistent and precise, leading to better end products.

"By shifting from mass commodity ingredients and toward specific ingredients matched precisely to specific needs, processing efficiencies can be fine-tuned and specific markets addressed," says Aughenbaugh. "The full value of identity preservation is yet to be determined since it potentially affects many areas of the production and marketing cycle. Our job is to evaluate and assist in the implementation of identity preservation, working with users to help extract the value delivered to the process."



IdentityPreserved.com products and services allow precise measurement of crop characteristics and better tracking and management of specific crops through the production system. IdentityPreserved.com will offer AIT's existing identity preservation products, along with new on-site and online services to help all members of the food production chain grow, handle and use identity preserved products.

"Streamlining the process is the key concept behind IdentityPreserved.com," says Aughenbaugh. "In the world of identity preservation, no business is an island. Documentation, verification, communication and coordination are paramount to success. IdentityPreserved.com integrates products and services to meet the individual and mutual needs of every player in the identity preserved landscape."

These integrated products and services attempt to simplify and improve the structure of companies already practicing identity preservation. Companies new to identity preservation can realize the benefit of getting started on the right foot.

The company is initially targeting companies with specific grain needs - food processors, feed millers and seed producers - that currently contract for grain production directly with growers.



Key IdentityPreserved.com product categories include:

IP Information Services - Web-based educational and technical information along with current news and events.

IP Tools - Operations management, testing and data collection products to assist users in marking fields, identifying specific traits and tracking the crop through the production process.

IP Market Services - A range of on-site and online services aimed at streamlining identity preserved operations. These integrated services are designed to fulfill identity preserved needs and enable buyers, contractors, processors and crop producers to better communicate with each other about the progress of the crop from any point in the production pipeline.



IdentityPreserved.com now markets AIT's Postmark(r) signpost, CropTouch(tm) data collection technology, SeedTag(tm) trait database, TraitCheck(tm) and GMO Check(tm). Each of these products provides a simple, effective application of technology to help better manage the unique characteristics of identity preserved crops.

The following products are now part of IdentityPreserved.com:

* Postmark(r) Signposts - A standardized, patented system for identifying and marking field and crop locations, consisting of a field marking signpost and various decals allowing for clear, complete communication of key field information to anyone entering the field.

* CropTouch(tm) Technology - A patented electronic tracking system for identity preserved materials and processes throughout the food production and processing industries. It consists of robust hardware for verifiable data acquisition and transfer that interfaces with IdentityPreserved.com's online services for data viewing and reporting.

* SeedTag(tm) - The industry's first comprehensive database of commercial seeds for U.S. corn, soybeans and cotton. Including information about thousands of varieties from hundreds of companies.

* TraitCheck(tm) - Fast, effective field tests to detect genetically modified material in plant, seed and grain samples. TraitCheck can test for the Roundup Ready(r) gene in soybean and canola leaf, seed or grain samples. A TraitCheck test is available to detect the Bt gene and another to detect the Liberty Link gene in corn grain samples. The tests are manufactured by Strategic Diagnostics, Inc. (www.sdix.com).

* GMO Check(tm) - Laboratory based quantitative ELISA (enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay) tests to detect genetically enhanced material in food ingredients. Tests are available for Roundup Ready gene protein in soybean and Bt corn gene protein in food ingredients. The tests are manufactured by Strategic Diagnostics, Inc. (www.sdix.com).

The company Web site (www.IdentityPreserved.com) offers detailed descriptions of products and services available now. Aughenbaugh says the company will introduce new products and services in the coming months.


IdentityPreserved.com is a strategic business unit of Agricultural Information Technologies of Iroquois, S.D. Founded in 1991, AIT develops electronic devices and systems for capturing and reporting a wide range of information. The company's production management systems are at the core of its identity preservation effort.


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Postmark is a registered trademark of IdentityPreserved.com
CropTouch and IP Track are trademarks of IdentityPreserved.com
TraitCheck and GMO Check are trademarks of Strategic Diagnostics, Inc.
Roundup Ready is a registered trademark of Monsanto Company.

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