SunOpta Announces Opening of Natural and Organic Sesame Hulling Operation

The operation is 35% owned by Tradin Organic Agriculture B.V., a division within the SunOpta International and Sourcing Group, and 65% owned by Kaleb Service Farmers House, an Ethiopian company.

20 Nov 2009 --- SunOpta Inc. announced that the SunOpta International Sourcing and Trading Group, in hand with its joint venture partner, has completed the construction of the first natural and organic sesame hulling plant in Ethiopia, operated as Selet Hulling Plc. The operation is 35% owned by Tradin Organic Agriculture B.V., a division within the SunOpta International and Sourcing Group, and 65% owned by Kaleb Service Farmers House, an Ethiopian company.

Located near Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the plant was funded by the joint venture partners with a financial grant from the Government of the Netherlands and has current capacity to process ten thousand metric tons of sesame per year with the potential to generate revenues in excess of $20 million US. Selet's natural and organic sesame products will be sold exclusively by Tradin Organics to export markets to be used in the food ingredient and bakery industries. Additional investments will be contemplated to further process and add value to hulled sesame products as markets and applications are developed.

The facilities have been built to comply with international standards for food manufacturing and utilize state-of-the-art technologies including dry hulling and color sorting. A full quality assurance program has been implemented and extensive training and monitoring programs are in place to ensure that Selet's products comply with stringent quality standards, providing full traceability from the farm through production and delivery.

Selet will purchase sesame seeds from grower owned cooperatives representing over 1500 farmers in Humera, a region situated to the north of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Selet has also developed a research and development operation in Humera and is working on methods to improve product quality and farm yields. When combined with an equitable payment structure, Selet is creating a platform for sustainable agriculture in Ethiopia which will provide better incomes for farmers, improve the well-being of their families and provide needed support for local schools and other community infrastructure.

"The plant opening is the culmination of several years of hard work by the Selet team," said Gerard Versteegh, President of Tradin Organic Agriculture B.V. "We believe we not only have a very strong business opportunity in Ethiopia, but one that can really make a difference in the communities we do business in, having a positive impact on thousands of people. We are pleased to be part of this exciting venture and proud of our contribution to the economic development of this region."

The inaugural ceremony for the sesame hulling plant was attended by Ethiopia's President Girma Woldegiorgis, as well as several Ministers of the Ethiopian Government and the Dutch, Japanese and Canadian ambassadors to Ethiopia.

Tradin Organic Agriculture B.V. specializes in sourcing and selling organic products from all over the world, including certified organic and fair trade coffee from Ethiopia. The company is a division of the SunOpta International Sourcing and Trading Group and is headquartered in Amsterdam with offices and operations in several countries including China, Indonesia, Vietnam, Germany, and several other countries in the European Union.