000433 On-Line Meat Exchange Reports $19.2M in Orders

Madison, WI - In the launch of its on-line meat exchange, FoodUSA.com reported 518 total orders have been posted on the site.

The exchange uses a simple bid/ask system to bring buyers and sellers together in a neutral exchange environment. In its first day of exchange activity, a total of 17.6 million pounds of meat and poultry valued at $19.2 million were offered, making this one of the most successful opening days of exchange trading in e-commerce history.

“This result demonstrates an eagerness within the meat industry to capitalize on the efficiencies and reduced costs offered by FoodUSA.com's e- commerce solutions,” says FoodUSA.com Chief Marketing Officer Tom O'Connell.

O'Connell explained that the day's tally of more than 150 log-ins to the exchange “is only the beginning. “We are extremely pleased by our launch results and anticipate rapid growth as more and more meat companies learn of this success.”

“This would be a first-day trading result any new exchange could be proud of,” says Lisa Williams, Program Manager, B2B e-Commerce, The Yankee Group, a Boston-based research and consulting firm. “FoodUSA is one to watch.” In marketing its services to the meat industry, FoodUSA.com ensures that exchange participants take advantage of the company's training and facilitation offerings in order to enjoy the full benefit of the company's total solutions package. FoodUSA.com also distinguishes itself by holding no ownership stakes in companies that would create conflicts and inhibit its pursuit of maximum efficiency across the industry.

In addition to the basic exchange, FoodUSA.com provides a host of value- added services, including logistics, warehousing and transportation. These, and future services such as export facilitation, credit, inspection, ERP integration and product tracking will continue to attract buyers and sellers to FoodUSA.com's exchange. “We're offering the meat industry the single greatest means of reducing transaction costs, while creating new business opportunities for all our customers by bringing more buyers and sellers together in a single online arena,” said O'Connell.

FoodUSA.com has received the strongest industry endorsement from the American Meat Institute , which has recently joined the company as a partner dedicated to developing e-commerce solutions which will increase the efficiency, profitability and safety of meat and poultry trade worldwide.

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