GREY:FEVCF - Post by User
Post by
MrStockingtonon Feb 25, 2009 12:41pm
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Post# 15802513
E-mail to FTE
E-mail to FTEI had an e-mail conversation with investor relations yesterday and I believe there is reason for great optimism with this company especially with the addition of Mr. Rick Denyes as President and COO.
According to the e-mail response I received Mr. Denyes has been responsible for the move to the new production facility as he felt the old facility was too costly and did not provide the environment conditions (temperature and humidity) most ideal for the production process. Mr. Denyes also championed the idea of sourcing some of the castings production (Paigons Live Bait) rather than produce all the castings in house. Forterra is also currently considering entering into other sourcing agreements in the future with other companies; for increased production and also to serve as a means of growing into other geographic markets.
I asked about production levels as it was stated in the June 2, 2008 news release that FTE expected to see a steady increase in production going forward. I was told that based on discussions with potential customers FTE is confident that they will be required to double and re-double production to meet demand. However they also mentioned that the process of landing these larger contracts is taking longer than expected due to the amount of time required by potential customers to fully complete the testing period of FTE products. Also potential customers have been inquiring about possible customization of products (ie different ingredients to address specific needs or market opportunities), assurances that FTE can meet their volume requirements (makes sense since FTE is a relatively new company), as well as packaging and pricing. FTE stated they have not lost or ended any of the principal contracts that have been under discussion or negotiation the process is just longer than previoulsy anticipated. FTE also noted that they understand the seasonality of the business but they expect this to change over time as they develop green-house growers and expand geographically. However while the business remains seasonal they do not require the same volume of production in the latter part of the calendar year as the busy spring/summer growing season makes up for the slow down during the colder months of the year and FTE are now currently building their inventories to meet the demand they expect for the spring and summer seasons.
FTE has also been busy perfecting their operation as they noticed when they began to ramp up production last summer that although they were getting an increase in castings production they noticed a decrease in breeding and have changed their method of operations to achieve the perfect balance between casting production and breeding.
I have been watching FTE for just about a year now and I have always been a fan of the company and the products they produce and the benefits for the environment and believe it is only a matter of time before this company becomes something special and with Mr.Denyes at the helm I am confident we will reach these higher levels much sooner than later.