Prioritising vet engagement

nterchem’s product offering covers all species, with a key focus on specific segments, and this product range is supported by a technical support team and a marketing team. This structure has been in place for five years, Pat says. “It has helped our business to effectively address specific animal health challenges in each division’s field of activity. For instance, as part of our large-animal work, we have focused on bovine reproduction, using our reproductive hormone range as part of the fixed time, artificial insemination sexed semen programme. That has helped our bovine reproduction business to grow significantly within the last two years.”

Alternatives to antibiotics

Interchem’s large-animal team has also identified calf health as another specialist area and is actively looking at measures that will reduce the unnecessary use of antibiotics in treating calves: “At Interchem, we are strong advocates for the responsible use of antibiotics. A key initiative we took in this regard was to partner with Precision Microbes to launch the Precision Microbes portfolio, which includes pro and postbiotics, in Ireland in 2021. This product is designed to improve gut health, support immunity in all species, and to provide protection including gut stabilisation.”
In conjunction with Precision Microbes, eight on-farm trials were carried out in 2021 and 2022. Calves were fed Precision Microbes (30mls per calf daily) from birth to weaning on all trial farms. Among the findings from the trial, it was reported that across all eight farms, a reduction of treatments and antibiotic usage was observed in calves given Precision Microbes on a long-term, daily basis up to weaning. A significant reduction in digestive disturbances/diarrhoea was also seen in these calves, Pat reports.

In launching the Precision Microbes product, Pat says the company adhered to a principle that they apply across all their product sales and marketing: “Proof of concept is a cornerstone of the way we do business. To develop our product portfolio effectively, we go directly to the vet and through them, we engage with the farmer to demonstrate what each product can do and show them the evidence. Together, the farm vet and the farmer have a more comprehensive herd health picture and understand our products and their capabilities.”

Engaging with vets

Pat says that Interchem’s relationship with the veterinary community is vital to its business: “Apart from the independent merchants and co-ops with whom we deal through our PharVet business, a sister company of Interchem, most of our business is done through vets, and many of our product lines are vet-exclusive. We value that relationship, and we are continuously working hard to deepen it. We strive to provide ‘value-add’ to our customers including education events such as ‘Lunch & Learn’, webinars, and knowledge-sharing events as well as technical, business and marketing support.
“For example, we recently hosted a webinar on prevalence, prevention and treatment of liver fluke for vets, featuring experts from Teagasc and UCD, as well as one of our own vets. Further examples are the vet farmer meetings, and we hosted 18 of those across the country this autumn.”

Innovative companion animal offering

The companion animal team, in line with Interchem’s overall strategic approach has defined its own target areas within the sector, including the companion animal immune system, pet behaviour, cardiology, pet nutrition and ophthalmology. “Our companion animal team is currently working on the introduction of an immunotherapy service that identifies allergens in pets and horses and facilitates the production of a vaccine tailored to the individual animal. There are existing treatments that work well but this immunotherapy innovation will be a valuable new addition to the solutions that vets currently have at their disposal. In the months ahead, our territory managers will visit small animal clinics around the country and discuss its benefits with them.”

Water quality

Interchem’s swine division is also very veterinary-focused, Pat notes. An issue that’s of particular concern to pig farmers is water quality in the pig unit. “We have a programme in place where we work with farmers and vets to test water for quality, the presence of pathogens and biofilm levels in the pipes – a bespoke examination for each farm. We then work with each farm to devise a plan specific to it.” Pat says Interchem’s equine division is at a nascent stage comparatively but is already showing significant potential: “Our equine division is growing with a fully veterinary-exclusive portfolio. We appointed a business manager to the division this year and the team is targeting osteoarthritis and joint conditions as well as gut health.”

Company performance and outlook

Although he’s disinclined to share specific figures, Pat says the company is performing strongly across all its divisions. “We currently employ 36 people and we’re growing faster than the industry average for the last few years, and that’s in an industry which in itself has been performing well overall.”
What can we expect from Interchem in 2024? “We will be rolling out the immunotherapy service for companion animals across the country in the new year. Spring, of course, is a critical period for ruminants, so we will be working in close partnership with vets and farmers to address issues such as gut health, Mycoplasma bovis vaccine, and Q fever vaccine, a zoonotic disease in dairy cows.”
Interchem is already one year into a five-year plan, Pat says: “We are working to the plan and it’s a case of ‘so far, so good’. At the same time, while the broader sector is performing well, we have to be cognisant of the serious levels of uncertainty out there in relation to certain market segments, such as the dairy industry and the question of how it will evolve. Fast forward eight to 10 years and who knows what we’re going to see.”
However, Pat is confident that the company is well-equipped to deal with future challenges: “The experience and expertise of our teams, and our evidence-based, proof-of-concept approach to marketing, along with the emphasis we place on engagement with vets, farmers and end-users, provide a solid framework for the business and will stand us in good stead in the years ahead.”