SAN DIEGO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–May 20, 2005–PURE Bioscience today announced it has signed a contract with Maryland-based Innovative Medical Services, LLC for the sale of PURE’s water treatment division for $2.375 million. The sale of the water division is targeted to close by the end of this month.
The transaction will result in a cash payment at closing of at least $1.95M and post-closing payments of $225,000 within 90 days and up to an additional $200,000 within 13 months. PURE will use the proceeds of the sale to retire substantially all debt and to capitalize the continuing commercialization of its current and future bioscience products, including those for its recently announced licensee, Ciba Specialty Chemicals.
Michael L. Krall, President and CEO of PURE Bioscience, stated, “Following the completion of the sale, we will accelerate our business development activities for our bioscience products, including continued marketing of current products as well as laboratory, regulatory and intellectual property work for development stage products targeting markets such as food processing, personal care, household care and pharmaceutical.”
Krall continued, “We have enjoyed 12 years of solid success in our Water Treatment Division and are delighted that the new owners are committed to investing in and growing this business to provide our Pharmacy customers superior products and services.”
Complete Focus on Immense Potential of Bioscience Technologies
PURE’s patented new antimicrobial molecule, silver dihydrogen citrate (SDC), is an electrolytically generated source of stabilized ionic silver that can serve as the basis for a broad range of products in diverse markets. Colorless, odorless, tasteless and non-caustic, the aqueous SDC formulates well with other compounds. PURE produces and has begun to market pre-formulated, ready-to-use product, as well as varying strengths of SDC concentrate as an additive or raw material for inclusion in other companies’ products.
For example, PURE recently announced it granted Ciba Specialty Chemicals a worldwide license to market and sell PURE’s SDC as a preservative and biocide into personal care and household care markets. Ciba has begun to actively market SDC to its customers and will continue to fund additional testing and data development necessary for domestic and international regulatory filings for SDC uses in the personal care and household care markets.
Axen30, PURE’s first commercialized SDC product, is a powerful hard surface disinfectant. The efficacy of Axen30 exceeds that of most leading commercial and consumer products while maintaining a lower toxicity rating. EPA registered claims for Axen30 include a 30 second kill time and an unmatched 24 hour residual kill on standard indicator bacteria, a 2 minute kill time on some resistant strains of bacteria including MRSA and VRE, 10 minute kill time on fungi, 30 second kill time on HIV Type I, and 10 minute kill time on other viruses. Recently, PURE received EPA registration of expanded claims for its Axen30 hard surface disinfectant to include use on hard surfaces in childcare facilities. The EPA previously registered Axen30 for disinfection of hard surfaces including those in restaurants, homes and medical facilities. The EPA’s registration of Axen30 for use on sensitive children’s use sites emphasizes the “least-toxic” characteristics of Axen30 while expanding its versatility in the professional and consumer disinfection markets.
PURE’s Axen30 disinfectant is currently sold by The Home Depot Supply as Germ Control24. In addition to the disinfectant, The Home Depot Supply is now selling PURE’s boric acid-based insecticides as Roach Control and Ant Control. All three products are manufactured by PURE and distributed to The Home Depot Supply through PURE’s distribution partner, Clean Control Corporation, under Clean Control’s private label brands.