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Sarasota, Florida – April 22, 2003 – Increasing profits, improving crop quality and eliminating waste are the secrets behind the success of Intertape Polymer Group’s innovative new polyethylene crop cover, the Nova-Thene® HayMaster System™, introduced last month.
“ Farmers throughout the country are finding that a properly covered haystack of bales or rolls may require an extremely minimal investment while returning up to an impressive $75 per ton, because the quality and quantity of their hay has improved,” says Dohn Berger, Intertape’s Sales & Marketing Manager for Nova-Thene® HayMaster™. “In Georgia alone, it was recently reported that nearly 50% of the state’s crops were lost from exposure to sun, wind and rain. Our product can virtually eliminate statistics like that by covering hay at a nominal cost with little inconvenience to the farmer.”
The Nova-Thene® HayMaster™ cover is superior to others on the market because it is created from a unique P.E./U.V. coated woven fabric called Nova-Thene® which allows air to penetrate, but not a drop of moisture, thereby eliminating mold and crop spoilage. And it’s versatile: depending on weather conditions, crops can be covered on top, or on all sides, as needed. Nova-Thene® HayMaster® offers several features that competing brands simply do not have. For instance, Nova-Thene® HayMaster™ is the only brand on the market to offer Co-Extrusion Coating, a double coating that greatly decreases the penetration of UV rays, which can break down lower-quality fabrics. It’s the best fabric on the market to date. “ The double coating on each side of the fabric has the effect of four thicknesses of film, adding life, strength, opacity and durability,” Berger explains. “This thick skin is as good as a barn, but it costs a lot less and you can place it wherever your hay is stacked, leaving your real barn free for other more important uses. And the covers are practically indestructible; they can be reused season after season.” More than 155 million tons of hay are grown annually, making it the nation’s third largest cash crop. Less than 5% of that is regularly covered, meaning millions of tons are wasted needlessly every year.
Fresher Hay: The Preferred Snack of the Choosiest Livestock
“ Whether storing alfalfa as feed for horses, dairy cows or beef cows, farmers will find that eliminating moisture improves the quality and nutritional value of their hay, which in turn, improves their livestock,” Berger continues. “The unprotected round bales that are used to feed cows can turn to pure slime. This type of feed is said to be detrimental to the health of the cattle, especially pregnant cows. Covered hay will most certainly lead to a healthy herd with improved reproduction. And top-quality, dry, green hay is better for fussy horses.” The Nova-Thene® HayMaster™ tarpaulin retains an impressive 80% of its strength after 2,000 hours of use and is the only tarp on the market that is available with a 150-inch width – allowing for fewer seams, better sizing and improved strength. It is available in a variety of colors in three fabric weights: 6.3 oz., 7.4 oz. and 12 oz. per square yard at a thickness from 12 to 20 mils. The Nova-Thene® HayMaster System™ is virtually maintenance-free and can be installed, removed and stored as needed for each season’s harvest.
“ Farmers are going to find that the system has paid for itself by the time the season’s first clouds roll in,” concludes Berger. “We’re amazed at the response we’ve gotten already, and the product is brand new to the market.”
Since 1981, Intertape Polymer Group Inc., a publicly owned company, has strategically grown to support operations in 21 facilities with approximately 2,600 employees. Intertape develops and manufactures a broad range of packaging products that reflect the needs of our customers. These include one of the largest offerings of tapes available: pressure-sensitive and water-activated carton sealing, cloth duct, double-coated, masking, HVAC, electrical/electronic, filament and high-performance specialty tapes. Intertape also produces a wide variety of shrink film, stretch film, carton sealing and shrink packaging equipment, woven coated fabrics and flexible intermediate bulk containers.
For more information, please contact:
Dohn Berger, Nova-Thene® HayMaster™ Marketing Manager
Phone: 1-972-576-9470
dberger@itape.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Dave Atkinson
Corporate Communications Director
Intertape Polymer Group Inc.
941-727-5788
datkinso@itape.com
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