CHANGGE CITY, China, June 16 /Xinhua-PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Zhongpin Inc. (Nasdaq: HOGS) (“Zhongpin”), a leading meat and food processing company in the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”), today announced that it resumed production at the Deyang plant, located in Cangshan County, Sichuan Province, which was affected by an earthquake. The facility has resumed 80% of prior-earthquake utilization level. During the recovery period, Zhongpin continued supply to customers under contract with the Deyang plant using its production facility in Zhumadian, Henan Province.
“We are glad to resume production at the Deyang plant. At the time of the disaster, we focused on providing aid and assisting in the relief efforts. We continued to pay salaries to our employees during the period of suspended production,” commented Mr. Xianfu Zhu, Chief Executive Officer of Zhongpin. “The Deyang plant is now in process of a speedy recovery and we will return to our normal production level by the end of this month. We are also confident in achieving our fiscal year 2008 financial targets.”
On May 12, 2008, Zhongpin’s processing facility in Deyang, Sichuan Province was adversely impacted by an earthquake. Water and electricity supplies were cut off during the earthquake and resumed on the morning of May 14, 2008. There was no loss of life at the plant, but there was some damage to workshops and equipment at the facility. The Deyang plant has annual capacity of 45,000 metric tons, accounting for 12.5% of Zhongpin’s total capacity of chilled and frozen pork.
About Zhongpin
Zhongpin is a meat and food processing company that specializes in pork and pork products, and fruits and vegetables, in the PRC. Its distribution network in the PRC spans more than 20 provinces and includes over 2,900 retail outlets. Zhongpin’s export markets include the European Union, Eastern Europe, Russia, Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea. For more information, contact CCG Elite directly or go to Zhongpin’s website at http://www.zpfood.com .
Safe Harbor Under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Certain statements in this press release constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Federal securities laws. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts. Such forward-looking statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of the company’s management and are subject to risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from the forward-looking statements. The following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements: unanticipated changes in product demand, interruptions in the supply of live pigs/raw pork, downturns in the Chinese economy, delivery delays, freezer facility malfunctions, poor performance of the retail distribution network, changes in applicable regulations, and other information detailed from time to time in the company’s filings and future filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.
For more information, please contact:
Yuanmei Ma, Chief Financial Officer
Zhongpin Inc.
Tel: +86-10-8286-1788
Email: zhongpin.ir@gmail.com
Web: http://www.zpfood.com
Crocker Coulson, President
CCG Elite
Tel: +1-646-213-1915
Email: crocker.coulson@ccgir.com
Web: http://www.ccgelite.com
