Jan 13 2012 --- Synutra International, Inc., which owns subsidiaries in China that produce, market and sell nutritional products for infants, children and adults, issued a statement in response to local Chinese media reports of a pair of 4-month old twins in Jiangxi province who became ill with severe intestinal symptoms. One passed away from dehydration on January 7, 2012. The other has recovered following hospitalization. Both children were reported to have been consuming Synutra powdered milk formula products for weeks before the sudden onset of their illnesses.

Mr. Liang Zhang, Chairman and CEO of Synutra, stated, "Our hearts go out to the family suffering from this tragic event. At the same time, we firmly believe this is an isolated incident unrelated to Synutra's products.  All of our products, including the lot under question, are thoroughly tested and analyzed before shipment. These products are formulated and produced under stringent safety standards to safely meet the nutritional needs of infants.  We have chosen to not recall any of our products because we are confident that they are safe. We are also not aware of any decisions to remove our products from store shelves, except in the store from which the ill infants' formula originated.

"The Company and our distributors are actively cooperating with various local and provincial authorities to investigate the source of the reported illness," continued Mr. Zhang. "The Jiangxi Bureau of Quality and Technical Supervision is in the process of testing product samples collected from the affected family.  We recognize the pain of the grieving family. However, we hope to reassure consumers that we are fully confident that our products are safe.  We believe in the quality of our products and stand by our quality assurances," Mr. Zhang concluded.