UBC Receives First Milestone Payment from Forbes Under Revised License Agreement; $250,000 Milestone Payment One of the Largest Received to Date.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 18, 1999--

Forbes Medi-Tech(TSE:FMI.) UBC Forbes Medi-Tech (FMI: TSE) and the University of British Columbia (UBC) today announced that Forbes has paid UBC $250,000 as a first royalty payment under the Forbes/UBC License Agreement. This represents a portion of a milestone payment Forbes recently received under its Master License Agreement with Novartis Consumer Health to use or sub-license Phytrol(TM) - Forbes' sterol-based cholesterol-lowering functional food ingredient.

"This payment is one of the largest single milestone payments we have received to date," said Angus Livingstone, Managing Director of UBC's Industry Liaison Office. "Receiving the first commercial milestone payment from Forbes is a direct validation of our strategy to link industry with UBC research and technology opportunities such as, in this case, Dr. Kutney's work from the Department of Chemistry. Our partnership with Forbes is a good example of how UBC and industry are working together to generate knowledge-intensive business in British Columbia with global market opportunities."

Reflecting UBC's flexibility and realistic approach to commercialize its licensed technology, Forbes and UBC have agreed to amend the terms of their License Agreement to better reflect the economics of the emerging functional food industry. The terms of the UBC Agreement now provide that Forbes will pay UBC a fixed percentage of the following: royalty revenue it earns and receives from Novartis related to direct or sub-licensee sales of Phytrol(TM); gross profits received by Forbes from its manufacturing sales of Phytrol to Novartis; and related up-front or milestone payments the Company receives.

"This is a significant event for both Forbes and UBC," said Tazdin Esmail, Forbes' President and CEO. "It reflects the strong relationship we enjoy with both UBC and Novartis who are committed to making our partnerships successful."

Forbes Medi-Tech Inc. is dedicated to the research, development and commercialization of innovative nutraceutical and pharmaceutical products derived from nature. By extracting plant sterols from pulping by-products, Forbes is developing cholesterol-lowering agents to be used both as functional food ingredients and pharmaceutical therapeutics in the battle against heart disease. Forbes is also developing innovative fermentation technology that converts plant sterols into pharmaceutical fine chemicals, essential in the production of various pharmaceutical steroids such as contraceptive agents and anti-inflammatories. Phytrol(TM) is a trademark of Forbes Medi-Tech Inc.

UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA'S INDUSTRY LIAISON OFFICE.

The UILO is the link to UBC's research resources, negotiating all research contracts with industry and commercializing the University's research discoveries, often by forming spin-off companies to scale-up and market the technologies. By fostering the development of spin-off companies like Forbes, UBC helps to build and diversify BC's economy while making the social benefits of University research available to all.