25 Oct 2019 17:23
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION
25 October 2019
Postponement of results and suspension of listing
PureCircle (LSE: PURE) (the "Company" and together with its subsidiary undertakings, the "Group"), the world's leading producer and innovator of great tasting stevia sweeteners for the global food and beverage industry, makes the following update further to the announcement of 20 September 2019.
In that announcement, the Company referred to a potential issue relating to the classification and valuation of inventory with an aggregate value of up to US$30m, which had been identified during the course of the audit of the Group's financial statements. The Company announced that it had commenced an investigation together with its professional advisers and would make further announcements as the results of the investigation became known.
The Company and its professional advisers have made good progress with the investigation but it is not yet complete. Although there can be no certainty as to the final outcome until the investigation is complete, current indications are that the aggregate amount of the issues identified will be significantly less than the US$30m announced on 20 September 2019.
The Company and its professional advisers have seen no indication that the issues identified will have any impact on the net debt of the Group or the cash generation of the business.
Investigations continue as to the root cause of the errors, but the Board has seen no evidence that the issues arose as a result of any fraud or impropriety.
The Company has approached its banks and is in ongoing discussions with them seeking appropriate waivers under its banking arrangements.
As a result of the investigation, the Board has concluded that the Company will be unable to comply with its listing obligations to publish the Group's full year audited results within 4 months of its year end (i.e. by 31 October 2019). The Company has requested the suspension of the listing of the Company's shares with effect from 7.30am on Monday 28 October 2019, pending the publication of the full year audited results.
A further update on the expected date for publication of the Group's full year audited results will be given as soon as possible.
For the purpose of providing as much clarity as possible, the Company wishes to advise that the provision taken against the carrying value of ML01 stock reflected in our Interim FY19 results is anticipated to be reversed to a large extent in the annual financial report. This is not connected to the inventory issue outlined above. A further update on this provision will be given in our full year results announcement.
Enquiries:
Investors/Analysts
Rakesh Sinha, CFO
Email: Rakesh.sinha@purecircle.com
Newgate Communications, Media Relations
Elisabeth Cowell
Giles Croot
Email: purecircle@newgatecomms.com
Phone: +44 (0) 20 3757 6880
Notes to Editors
About PureCircle
·; PureCircle is the only company that combines advanced R&D with full vertical integration from farm to high-quality, great-tasting innovative stevia sweeteners.
·; The Company collaborates with farmers who grow the stevia plants and with food and beverage companies which seek to improve their low- and no-calorie formulations using a sweetener from plants.
·; PureCircle will continue to: lead in research, development and innovation; produce a growing supply of multiple varieties of stevia sweeteners with sugar-like taste, using all necessary and appropriate methods of production; and be a resource and innovation partner for food and beverage companies.
·; PureCircle stevia flavor modifiers work in synergy with sweeteners to improve the taste, mouthfeel and calorie profile, and enhance the cost effectiveness, of beverage and food products.
·; Founded in 2002, PureCircle is continually investing in breakthrough research and development and it has been granted over 100 stevia-related patents with more than 250 applied for patents pending.
·; PureCircle has offices around the world with the global headquarters in Chicago, Illinois.
·; To meet growing demand for stevia sweeteners, PureCircle is rapidly ramping up its supply capability. It completed expansion of its Malaysian stevia extract facility in March 2017, increasing its capacity to rapidly supply the newer and great-tasting specialty stevia sweeteners and helping provide ever-increasing value to its customers.
·; PureCircle's shares are listed on the main market of the London Stock Exchange.
·; For more information, visit: www.purecircle.com
About stevia
·; Given the growing global concerns about obesity and diabetes, beverage and food companies are working responsibly to reduce sugar and calories in their products, responding to both consumers and health and wellness advocates. Sweeteners from the stevia plant offer sugar-like taste and are becoming an increasingly important tool for these companies.
·; Like sugar, stevia sweeteners are from plants. But unlike sugar, they enable low-calorie and zero-calorie formulations of beverages and foods.
·; Stevia leaf extract is a natural-based, zero calorie, high-intensity sweetener, used by global food and beverage companies as a great-tasting zero-calorie alternative to sugar and artificial sweeteners.
·; Stevia is a naturally sweet plant native to South America; today, it is grown around the world, notably in Kenya, China and the US.
·; The sweet-tasting parts of the stevia leaf are up to 350 times sweeter than sugar: stevia's high-intensity sweetness means it requires far less water and land than sugar.
·; Research has shown that the molecules of the stevia leaf are present and unchanged in the dried stevia leaf, through the commercial extraction and purification process, and in the final stevia leaf extract product. All major global regulatory organisations, across 65 countries, have approved the use of high-purity stevia leaf extracts in food and beverages.
·; For more information on the science of stevia, please visit https://www.purecirclesteviainstitute.com/