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Kiyota Beef to use retinal imaging technology to identify its Japanese cattle
Kiyota Beef, a Japanese cattle feeder, will use Optibrand's retinal imaging technology to identify its high quality Japanese beef. Optibrand personnel traveled to Oita, Japan, the week of April 11 to collect retinal images and enroll the first cattle. In mid-summer, these same animals will be imaged again at the harvest plant. Kiyota Beef will then begin to increase production to fill its distribution chain with beef from retinal-imaged cattle.
"Japanese consumers are very concerned about the safety of the products they purchase. They rely on information about the source of these products to make purchasing decisions," said Hironori Kiyota, president of Kiyota Beef. "Source verification using Optibrand technology is much more secure than the current tag-based system. We want to provide Japanese consumers with the additional assurances that retinal imaging can provide."
Kiyota Beef produces a range of products including high quality Wagyu beef. Marketing their products as retinal imaged will allow Kiyota Beef to differentiate them from those of other Japanese suppliers. Optibrand will be working with the company to create a readily identifiable brand.
Kiyota Beef will use this to produce point-of-sale materials that will educate Japanese consumers about the security of retinal imaging. Mark Swanson, executive vice president of Optibrand, recently returned from Japan where he was part of the team working with Kiyota Beef.
"Optibrand's technology is recognized as the gold-standard for traceability and source verification," he said. "The high level of interest we have seen among Japanese beef producers, importers and retailers is a direct result of the security provided by retinal identification."
Founded in 1998, Optibrand Ltd., LLC is based in Fort Collins, Colorado and is the originator of the world's only retinal scanning system for livestock identification. Producers can use any identifier including retinal patterns, RFID tags, bar-coded tags, even preprinted or handwritten panel tags. The GPS receiver establishes a time, date and location trail for all animals while tamper-resistant retinal identification satisfies the most demanding customers.
Producers can enter, recall and edit critical production data from thousands of animals. Optibrand technology can function as a stand-alone traceability system or by providing producers and processors with the means to improve and verify the performance of tag-based systems. More information and downloadable images of the Optibrand's Secure Source Verification system can be viewed at www.optibrand.com.
Date: 5/24/05
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