Deputy Premier and Crown Investments Corporation (CIC) Minister Dwain Lingenfelter said today that CIC is pleased to join with other investors to help finance the continued growth of Bioriginal Food and Science Corporation of Saskatoon.

CIC will invest $1.5 million in preferred shares in the company, to help expand its facility in Saskatoon and its oilseed crushing plant in Asquith. Bioriginal manufactures and sells processed agricultural/organic products for use in health foods, nutritional supplements, body care preparations, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals and pet foods. CIC's current investment is $250,000.

"Bioriginal is one of the many vital, growing companies in the nutraceutical industry in Saskatchewan," Lingenfelter said. "It has a proven track record and we are confident that it will continue to be successful.

"Our additional investment is consistent with CIC's and the government's strategies to support companies that create value-added agricultural products. The company is also important to Saskatoon and Asquith, providing 60 high-quality jobs and spending thousands of dollars a year on local goods and services. We expect all of this to increase as a result of the company's expansion."

"Bioriginal is pleased and excited by CIC's decision to increase its participation," said Rick Kulow, president of Bioriginal. "The increased resources will allow us to extend our value-added processing in Saskatchewan into new areas such as standardized herbal extracts."

Kulow added that plans for the expansion are on the drawing board and construction is to begin this summer, with everything expected to be in full operation by early 2000.

Ted Boyle
Crown Investments Corporation
Regina
Phone: (306) 787-9039

Rick Kulow
Bioriginal Food & Science Corp.
Saskatoon
Phone: (306) 975-9256