FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Cari Hepp (919) 716-6413
or Ruffin Poole (919) 716-6788

October 2, 2000

Attorney General Mike Easley today announced a second major agreement with hog producers to accelerate the development of better technology to treat hog waste. Premium Standard, the second largest pork producer in the country, has agreed to assist in the development of environmentally superior technologies and to implement that technology on its hog farms within the State. The agreement mirrors a landmark agreement with Smithfield Foods (the largest pork producer in the country) announced by the Attorney General in late July. Premium Standard owns all or parts of The Lundy Packing Company, Dogwood Farms, Dogwood Farms II, L&S Farms, L&H Farms and Carolina Farms.

"We have used the Smithfield model to craft an agreement with another large hog producer," said Easley. "This second agreement brings us one step closer to our ultimate goal of a cleaner environment and healthy economy."

In the agreement, Premium Standard and its North Carolina subsidiaries agree to help develop and implement new technology that will protect the environment and the economy. Like the Smithfield agreement, the legally binding contract commits Premium Standard to undertake immediate measures to help protect the environment. Under the agreement, Premium Standard will pay $2.5 million into a trust that will be used to help develop the technology, improve the environment and defray the costs to the State in implementing the agreement.

The agreement again places North Carolina State University (NCSU) in the pivotal role of identifying improved waste disposal technologies. The agreement sets out a research and development effort to begin immediately and to be completed within two years. The conversion process will not exceed three years.

The agreement announced today is between Easley and Premium Standard Inc. and its subsidiaries: The Lundy Packing Company, Dogwood Farms, Dogwood Farms II, L&S Farms, L&H Farms and Carolina Farms. Premium Standard and its contract farms represent about 100 farms. The agreement commits the company to provide financial and technical assistance to its contract farms to implement the new technology. Taken together, Smithfield and Premium Standard represent over 75% of the hog farms in North Carolina.

"We do not have to choose between clean environment and a healthy economy. We must have both and this agreement proves that we can."

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