Neogen said today it plans to expand its presence in animal genomics after acquiring the assets of privately-held animal genomics company Scidera Genomics, a Celera Genomics spinoff that pioneered the development of genetic testing for dogs, cattle, poultry, and swine. The acquisition price was not disclosed.

Neogen said it will fold Scidera into its animal safety segment, which focuses on development of animal genomics along with manufacturing and distributing animal healthcare products, including diagnostics, pharmaceuticals, veterinary instruments, wound care, and disinfectants. Headquartered in Lansing, MI, publicly-traded Neogen also said it would retain Scidera’s current employees and continue to operate from the acquired company’s facilities in Davis, CA.

Scidera—formerly MetaMorphix or MMI Genomics—owns “critical” patents and other intellectual property, according to Neogen. It said the acquisition of Scidera, which led the private effort to sequence the canine genome, would further add to the genotyping testing technology Neogen can offer to worldwide animal genomics customers. Neogen also noted that Scidera has developed successful long-term customer relationships with key dog breed registries that include the American Kennel Club, and numerous cattle breed associations, including the American Akaushi Association and American Bucking Bull.

“Scidera’s highly respected technical staff and customer base represent a perfect complement to Neogen’s animal genomics businesses, GeneSeek and Igenity,” said Dr. Jason Lilly, Neogen’s vp of corporate development, in a statement.

Neogen acquired GeneSeek, a leading U.S. commercial agricultural service laboratory, in 2010, and snapped up Igenity in May 2012. GeneSeek had conducted genetic testing of samples for Igenity, which used the information with its bioinformatics databases to identify the key production traits of animals.

Neogen’s buying spree has continued since then; last October, it completed its acquisition of Macleod Pharmaceuticals, the original manufacturer of the leading veterinary antibiotic Uniprim®, a combination of trimethoprim and sulfadiazine prescribed for a wide range of infections.

During the quarter that ended Nov. 30—Neogen’s second quarter of its 2013 fiscal year—the company saw its net income zoom 30% to about $6.8 million from $5.2 million in the year-ago quarter, on revenues that grew 13% to $50.7 million, from $44.9 million in Q2 of FY’13.

Lon Bohannon, Neogen’s president and COO, attributed the results partially to same-store sales growth of key animal safety products, including small animal supplements and rodenticides, in a Dec. 20 statement. He said Neogen also capitalized on opportunities by responding quickly to Aflatoxin and DON outbreaks in the U.S. and EU grain harvests: “We were able to quickly ramp up production of our new test kits to meet the substantial demand. We believe our quick response to the outbreaks is a good example of the organizational strength that sets us apart from our competitors.”

The quarter was Neogen’s 75th consecutive profitable quarter from operations, and marked 31 consecutive quarters of revenue increases compared with the previous year.

For the first half of FY ’13, Neogen sales rose 11% to about $100.5 million from $90.6 million. Neogen finished FY 2012 with $22.5 million in net income, flat from the previous year, on revenues that rose 6.6% to $184 million.

Operations of Neogen also include a food safety division that markets dehydrated culture media, and diagnostic test kits to detect foodborne bacteria, natural toxins, food allergens, drug residues, plant diseases, and sanitation concerns.

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