April 12, 1999
(Industry, Trade and Technology)

Companies sign joint venture to expand product distribution

Canada Group Inc. of Channel-Port aux Basques, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Red Rock Ag Resources Inc. (subsidiary of Global Fibers Group Inc.) of Phoenix, Arizona today signed a deal that will see the two companies enter into a joint venture distribution agreement.

Through this deal, Canada Group Incorporated will distribute the Red Rock Ag Resources Inc. line of organic fertilizers throughout Atlantic Canada. The agreement will be in the form of a Canadian Master Distributer Agreement, which allows for exclusive distribution to the four Atlantic Canadian provinces: Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick.

"The signing of this deal is an excellent example of the potential that exists to increase business relations with our American partners. We are currently expanding our trade relationship with the United States through a four-day New England trade mission. This joint venture is a positive sign of the type of deals that are possible when both countries work together," said Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Brian Tobin.

As part of the deal, a joint venture laboratory will be established in Newfoundland. Canada Group Inc. plans to develop field testing trials on Red Rock products for agricultural use in concert with soil and crop specialists with the Department of Forest Resources and Agrifoods in a number of locations across Newfoundland and Labrador. The Newfoundland lab will also be used to develop a state-of-the-art agricultural database project for companies involved in the joint venture. This database will be beneficial for the application of high technology devices and in developing new formulas for soil and crop enhancement.

Through the joint venture, the companies also plan to establish labs in the three other Atlantic Canadian provinces, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia, as the joint venture progresses. Through the Newfoundland office, Canada Group Incorporated will also sell the products throughout the rest of Canada.

The Global Fibers Group is a vertically integrated agricultural holding company with a number of subsidiary companies involved in seed production, natural fertilizer production and distribution, natural fiber production and processing and the manufacturing of industrial products using natural fibers and recycled plastics. The company produces a variety of organic fertilizers and soil supplements. Through Red Rock Ag Resources Inc., the Global Fibers Group will distribute its Red Rock/Live Earth(TM) proprietary agricultural program through retail and commercial venues in Atlantic Canada.

"I am pleased that these companies are expanding both of their business bases by establishing this joint venture. The project has favorable commercial potential in the Atlantic provinces and will enhance fertilizer development through laboratory testing," noted Premier Tobin.

Media contact:

Bill Ramsay
President, Canada Group Inc.
(709) 695-8484

Doug Burgess
Director of Communications
Department of Industry, Trade and Technology
(709) 729-0050

1999 04 12 5:20 p.m.