Applied DNA Sciences has been awarded a five-year, $2.5 million contract to provide botanical-DNA based security and authentication tools to an unidentified U.S. government agency.
The company said Tuesday the government customer will have access to its SigNature DNA products under the blanket purchase agreement and Applied DNA Sciences will also develop new products throughout the duration of the contract.
Work on the contract began April 1 and will run through March 31, 2021.
James Hayward, chairman, president and CEO of APDN, said the agreement is intended to deploy “new applications without the need to negotiate individual contracts.â€
The U.S. government plans to use the DNA-tracing technologies to handle supply chain-related risks to critical infrastructure components.
Applied DNA Sciences designed its botanical-DNA based security and authentication services to help protect products, supply chains and intellectual property from fraudulent activities.