Biocorp N.A. Expands Market Reach: Signs Deal with AC Paper & Supply.

Business Editors/Environment Writers

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 10, 2003

Biocorp N.A. announced today the signing of AC Paper & Supply as a key distributor for the company's line of biodegradable and compostable products.

With the signing of AC Paper & Supply, Hercules, Calif., Biocorp N.A. is further expanding its already strong presence in California, as well as the Western United States. The new distributor will help drive more sustainable and environmentally responsible packaging and service items into mainstream use throughout the region.

"Offering Biocorp N.A.'s line of biodegradable and compostable products offers us a great alternative for our customers," said Allen King, Senior Account Executive for AC Paper & Supply. "It will allow us to work with leading restaurants, venues, foodservice providers, and even municipalities to better serve their product performance and waste management needs. There is a particular need for a local source of compostable can liners for use in municipal compostable waste collection programs which we can now fill."

Through the distributor agreement, AC Paper & Supply will be offering the full range of Biocorp N.A.'s ecologically responsible and cost-competitive products, including: food service products and disposables, liners, and bags. In addition, AC Paper will feature Biocorp N.A.'s new line of 100-percent commercially compostable cutlery called Nat-ur(TM) brand utensils.

Nat-ur brand utensils offer a more sustainable solution for tableware. The new forks, spoons, and knives feature annually renewable corn-based NatureWorks(a) PLA and offer consumers and the food service industry a more sustainable alternative to petroleum-based plastic cutlery. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); National Geographic headquarters in Washington, D.C.; Sodexho; U.S. Food Service; Aramark; and a number of colleges, universities, and national state parks are already replacing their disposable utensils with the commercially compostable cutlery.

"AC Paper & Supply is a natural partner for us," said Russ Wegner, General Manager of Biocorp San Francisco. "The company's leadership position in the food service industry and relationship with key customers throughout the West Coast, as well as internationally, makes them the right partner to help build on the strong market demand for biodegradable products."

Biocorp's products, especially Nat-ur utensils, offer restaurants, large venues, and other food service providers an unprecedented option for meeting their service needs in an ecologically responsible manner. Success to date with foodservice applications in both the public and private sectors proves that service providers, as well as consumers, place significant value on having functional serviceware that also helps reduce the impact on the environment.

Biocorp N.A.'s products provide more than just the performance and durability desired in serviceware, liners, and bags. They will not deplete the Earth's limited resources like traditional, petroleum-based disposable serviceware. Many of the products carry the endorsement of stringent regional compostability standards as well as certification from the Biodegradable Products Institute (BPI). This has led to preferred use in municipalities, including several key ones in the San Francisco Bay Area.

AC Paper & Supply began operations servicing the San Francisco Bay Area in June 1961. The company's original focus was aimed primarily at the janitorial side of business -- towels, tissues, napkins, and chemicals, as well as food service disposables and related items. Since then, the company has grown and expanded its offering, allowing customers to obtain their products from a single source. The company now serves a range of regional, national, and international customers in foodservice, industrial, and specialty markets. AC Paper & Supply can be contacted at 800-547-2737.

Biocorp N.A. is a leading provider of biodegradable packaging designed to meet the highest needs for sustainability. The company assists individuals, communities, schools, businesses, and governments in finding innovative ways to reach sustainability in the use and disposal of biodegradable packaging, relying on organic material through waste recovery systems. Biocorp N.A. offers a full line of certified biodegradable/compostable bags and liners for organics recovery programs as well as food service ware, including cutlery, cups, straws, lids, plates, and food containers. The company is involved in all levels of the supply and the recovery of sustainable packaging. Please visit http://www.nat-ur.com.

(a) Trademark of Cargill Dow LLC 

Nat-ur and the Nat-ur logo are trademarks of Biocorp North America 

Editor Note: More information on the Nat-ur brand coming soon.