Vivione Biosciences Receives Coveted Letter Of No Objection (LNO) Designation From U.S. Department Of Agriculture Food Safety & Inspection Services

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Vivione Biosciences Inc. receives coveted Letter of No Objection (LNO) designation from US Department of Agriculture Food Safety & Inspection Services

LITTLE ROCK, AR, April 22, 2014 /CNW/ - Vivione Biosciences Inc. ("Vivione") (TSXV:VBI), through its wholly owned subsidiary, Vivione Biosciences, LLC, is pleased to announced that, following a lengthy and vigorous process, the USDA FSIS (US Department of Agriculture Food Safety & Inspection Services) has issued Vivione a Letter of No Objection ("LNO") for its RAPID-B non-O157 Shigatoxigenicgroup of Escherichia coli ("STEC") Test Kit, intended for the rapid screening of beef trim and ground beef that may contain O-antigen positive Non-O157 STEC.

The Test Kit is used with Vivione's RAPID-B platform and is designed to provide companies with a faster result than existing options. Testing is accomplished by adding RAPID-B proprietary reagents to an enriched sample and then running the sample on the RAPID-B instrument. Analysis of the sample by the instrument is accomplished in minutes. The decision to adopt a new diagnostic testing platform is a serious decision for any company and the process needs to be absolutely trustworthy. Today's USDA FSIS designation enables companies to acquire and deploy the RAPID-B process with complete confidence that RAPID-B meets some of the world's toughest, most demanding testing standards. The LNO process involves the assessment of key platform parameters to ensure satisfactory performance and the ability to consistently produce accurate results.

According to the CDC (Center for Disease Control), an estimated 265,000 STEC infections occur each year in the United States. The importance of speed and sensitivity in detecting the presence of certain E. coli bacteriacannot be overestimated. E. coli contamination can have very serious economic and safety consequences to the meat industry, as well as immense public health implications. Any product containing these bacteria that inadvertently reaches the market would be subject to recall, with the likelihood of producers suffering both significant financial and reputational harm. As a result, meat producers currently hold inventory sufficiently to ensure that the product is not contaminated. The sooner a negative result is received, the faster the product can be released for shipment. The bottom line for producers is that the faster a result is received, the faster a producer can respond or ship their product to market.

"This LNO designation is an important step for us as we continue to expand in the food safety market," said Vivione's Chief Executive Officer Kevin Kuykendall. "The designation is highly valued in the food industry because the testing is performed by an independent laboratory and the data is reviewed by the USDA. With this validation, our customers now have the assurance that they need to move forward with the RAPID-B system. As they do, they lower their inventory risk, get their product to market faster, help contribute to the safety and security of the global food supply chain, and increase consumers' confidence in the industry's commitment to food safety."

About Vivione

Vivione is a TSX Venture Exchange listed biosciences company focused on the commercialization of its proprietary RAPID-B system; an integrated system of hardware, software and chemical reagents that quickly and accurately identify, quantify and qualify bacteria and other pathogens in key food & water safety, clinical, industrial and oil & gas environments. For more information, visit www.vivionebiosciences.com.

About the USDA FSIS LNO Program

The Letter of No Objection program was created by the USDA as a mechanism for accelerated validation of new diagnostic technologies to screen for the health safety risks of non-O157 Shiga Toxin producing Escherichia coli (Non-O157 STEC). As part of the process, the RAPID-B performance was compared to the USDA FSIS compendial method as outlined in their Microbiology Laboratory Guidebook.

Cautionary Statements

This document contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Although Vivione believes that the expectations reflected in its forward-looking statements are reasonable, such statements have been based on factors and assumptions concerning future events that may prove to be inaccurate. These factors and assumptions are based upon currently available information to Vivione. Such statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could influence actual results or events and cause actual results or events to differ materially from those stated, anticipated or implied in the forward-looking statements. This document contains forward-looking information relating to the commercialization and the development of RAPID-B, Vivione's business and growth strategy, the ability of RAPID-B to generate revenue and the success of RAPID-B in target markets. Readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The statements in this document are made as of the date of this document and, except as required by applicable law, Vivione does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or to revise any of the included forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Vivione undertakes no obligation to comment on analyses, expectations or statements made by third-parties in respect of Vivione, or its financial or operating results or (as applicable), their securities.

NEITHER THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER (AS THAT TERM IS DEFINED IN THE POLICIES OF THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE) ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE.

SOURCE Vivione Biosciences Inc.



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