Mera Pharmaceuticals Posts First Profit

Mera Pharmaceuticals Posts First Profit
Product Sales Increase 300%




KAILUA-KONA, Hawaii, June 15  /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Mera Pharmaceuticals
(OTC:MRPI) (BULLETIN BOARD: MRPI)  has posted its first ever quarterly profit
of $91,000 for its second quarter of fiscal 2004.  The results, included in the
Form 10-Q that Mera filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission
yesterday, also show a continuation of the favorable trends of increasing
revenues and decreasing expenses that the Company began a year ago.

Dan Beharry, Mera's chief executive, was very pleased with the results. "Even
though the largest factor in the quarterly profit was a non-operating income
item, without the steady and substantial progress we have made in the past year
to increase revenues and reduce expenses, we could not have achieved this
welcome result.  Our revenues from product sales, the most significant
category, increased over 300%, rising to $117,100 compared to $28,200 for the
same quarter a year ago.  The increase in revenues from continuing operations
was a healthy 84%.  Total operating revenues for the quarter rose to $162,000,
an increase of 23%, even though a royalty revenue stream has ended, and
revenues were up 37% versus the first half of 2003.

"We had cut expenses in each of the four previous quarters, and our second
quarter this year was no exception, as we managed a further reduction of 40%,
from $531,000 down to $317,000.  Once again, decreases in selling, general and
administrative expenses led the way, dropping 46%.  The result was a decrease
in the Company's operating loss to $206,000, down from $406,000 for our second
quarter last year, a 49% drop."

The Company believes that a number of factors will support continued
improvement in its performance.  Among them is the launch of a new product,
SalmonEssentials(TM), a unique combination of astaxanthin and Omega-3 fatty
acids that provides those who take it with the important health benefits
associated with eating wild salmon, the best dietary source of natural
astaxanthin.  Mera has also made progress in expanding international
distribution of its products, both in Asia and elsewhere.

According to Mr. Beharry, "There is evidence that awareness of astaxanthin and
recognition of its importance as a nutritional supplement is growing rapidly. 
Although initially viewed as a novel product that was not well understood,
astaxanthin is now poised to enter the health supplement mainstream.  Given the
limited amount of worldwide production capacity that exists and the
technological barriers to entering the market, Mera is well positioned to take
advantage of that trend.  We have made productivity improvements over the past
year that have increased the capacity of our production facility in Hawaii and
reduced our costs.  We have also identified other improvements that will enable
us to reduce production costs by 50% or more compared to just a year ago, and
we think that more improvement is possible.

"Our cost reductions and efficiency improvements will enable us to participate
actively in the raw materials markets, where the greatest growth is expected to
occur, and still preserve margins.  Combined with the planned expansion of our
Kona facility, Mera is well-positioned to continue its progress toward
achieving and maintaining operating profitability."

For the past 12 months Mera has focused on reducing costs to match revenues,
and it managed to reduce expenses by over $500,000 in the first half of this
year compared to last.  The focus has now shifted to taking advantage of the
expanding astaxanthin market to increase revenues rapidly and become
consistently profitable on an operating basis.  Plans are in place to intensify
sales and marketing activities and to support greatly expanded international
distribution.

Mera Pharmaceuticals, Inc., based in Kona, Hawaii, is focused on identifying
and producing valuable products from the rich, untapped resource of microbial
aquatic plants.  Long recognized for their potential medical and nutritional
value, these plants have been largely ignored because of the virtual
impossibility of growing them at commercial scale.  Mera has overcome that
obstacle through application of its patented photobioreactor technology, which
allows Mera to produce a large number of species at scale reliably, efficiently
and at high quality.  Mera's first nutraceutical product, the AstaFactor(R), is
a concentrated source of natural astaxanthin, found in a number of fish and
seafood species.  Astaxanthin is known to be an effective anti-inflammatory and
an extremely powerful antioxidant.

This press release contains forward-looking statements characterized by the use
of words such as "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "feel" and similar
expressions.  Actual results might differ materially from those projected in,
expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements.  The kinds of risks
and uncertainties that could affect the future operating results of Mera
include, without limitation:  (i) the ability to attract new business for its
existing products; (ii) the ability to identify new products and bring them to
market; (iii) the ability to identify promising pharmaceutical candidates and,
if they are identified, the ability to have them successfully complete the
clinical trial process;  (iv) the sensitivity of Mera to general economic
conditions; (v) the inability to attract the additional investment needed to
plans regarding the drug discovery and development business.  Additional
information concerning risk factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those described in forward looking statements can be found in
Mera's SEC filings, including its Annual Report on Form 10-KSB and other
periodic reports that it files under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended.

   Contact Info:  Gregory F. Kowal
                  Chairman of the Board
                  900 Fort Street Mall
                  Honolulu, HI  96813
                  Phone:  [phone]
                  Fax:    [phone]


DATASOURCE: Mera Pharmaceuticals, Inc.



CONTACT:  Gregory F. Kowal, Chairman of the Board of Mera

Pharmaceuticals, Inc., [phone], or fax, [phone]



Web site:  http://www.merapharma.com/

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