ITC patent infringement case: update - 22 Sep 2008

Tate & Lyle PLC (“Tate & Lyle”) announces that on 22 September 2008 an Administrative Law Judge at the U.S. International Trade Commission (“ITC”) in Washington D.C. gave his initial/preliminary ruling in respect of the patent-infringement case against certain manufacturers and importers of Chinese sucralose. With the exception of certain non-participating and defaulted Defendants, the Judge did not agree with Tate & Lyle’s claims. The Judge’s initial determination concerning the infringement ruling follows the trial earlier this year. A binding final determination by the full six-person Commission is expected by January 2009.

Robert Gibber, General Counsel of Tate & Lyle, said “This is a complex case involving a huge amount of in-depth technical analysis and debate between scientific experts. We would not have proceeded with an ITC case unless we believed we had adequate evidence to demonstrate that our patents are being infringed. We intend to petition for an appeal of the decision by the full Commission.”

Karl Kramer, President, Tate & Lyle Sucralose said, “Intellectual property is just one of a number of different layers of protection which define Tate & Lyle’s formidable competitive advantage in the global sucralose business. Our facilities in the US and Singapore, which operate at a level of cost, efficiency and environmental stewardship surpassed by none, produce sucralose which meets the highest standards of quality, purity and hygiene. Our business is built upon long-standing relationships with some of the world’s leading food, beverage and pharmaceutical manufacturers, as well as the established SPLENDA® brand which is renowned as a high quality, reliable and trusted product in a number of markets.”