Benchmark Holdings Regulatory News (BMK)

10 March 2015

Benchmark Holdings plc

("Benchmark" or "the Company")

Director Share Options

Benchmark Holdings plc announces that on 9 March 2015, and in accordance with the intention disclosed in its Annual Report and Accounts published on 27 January 2015, options over a total of 67,647 Ordinary Shares of 0.1 pence each ("Ordinary Shares") were granted to Mark Plampin, the Company's Chief Financial Officer under the Company Share Option Scheme (CSOP) in respect of the 2014 deferred bonus. Following this grant, Mark Plampin remains interested in 401,686 Ordinary Shares and holds options over a total of 202,647 Ordinary Shares in the Company, representing approximately 0.18% and 0.09% of Benchmark's existing issued share capital respectively.

The options granted have a vesting period of three years, may be exercised up to the tenth anniversary of grant, have an exercise price of 0.1 pence per Ordinary Share and are not subject to performance criteria.

Notes to Editors:

Founded in 2000, Benchmark represents a new model in sustainable business development. Over the last decade it has built a profitable group of companies on the economics of a sustainable food supply chain. The company is growing in response to a rapidly increasing demand for sustainable food supply chains, and in particular for seafood, from both mature and emerging markets.

Benchmark is an ethical company with an explicit policy based on the "3E's" definition of a sustainable business - ethics, environment and economics - which guides its strategy and operations.

Following the transformative acquisitions of SalmoBreed and Stofnfiskur in December 2014, the Group now has four divisions: Animal Health which researches, manufactures and markets medicines and vaccines particularly for aquaculture; Sustainability Science which researches and informs sustainable development in the food industry, Technical Publishing which effects technology transfer through online publishing and education, and Animal Breeding and Genetics which is the second largest supplier of salmon eggs and genetic expertise in the world. Benchmark operates internationally with offices in the UK, Ireland, Norway, USA, Brazil, China, Russia, Iceland, and Thailand and, as at 28 February 2015, employs 323 people.

For further information on Benchmark please visit www.bmkholdings.com.