Bunge Limited (NYSE: BG) and DuPont (NYSE: DD) today announced a new soybean oil that enables food service providers and food processors to reduce or eliminate trans fatty acids in their products. 

The oil will be marketed as NUTRIUM(TM) Low Lin Soybean Oil.  It will be the first product sold under the NUTRIUM(TM) brand, which was created as part of an alliance between Bunge and DuPont.

NUTRIUM(TM) Low Lin comes from Pioneer(R) variety 93M20, developed by DuPont subsidiary Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc.  The new soybean variety features oil with a low linolenic acid profile of less than 3 percent and
offers better natural stability and increased shelf life.  When used for frying, low linolenic oil eliminates the need for partial hydrogenation.

"NUTRIUM(TM) Low Lin will help food companies reduce or eliminate trans fats from their products," said Carl Hausmann, president and CEO of Bunge North America, the North American operating arm of Bunge Limited.  "With the alliance, Bunge and DuPont can ensure a high-quality product, reliable supply and efficient delivery from the plant breeder to the farmer to the food company."

Bunge will manage marketing and distribution of NUTRIUM(TM) Low Lin to food service providers and food processors, who, in 2003, used more than 5 billion pounds of frying oil.  The industry has been looking for alternative oils because the U.S. Food and Drug Administration will require the inclusion of trans fats on food nutrition labels in 2006.

Pioneer(R) variety 93M20 is the first commercially available low linolenic soybean product variety with yield and weed control options that are competitive with the best soybean varieties on the market.  In addition to having the popular Roundup Ready(1) herbicide resistance trait, the variety comes to the market with three years of performance data.

"We've been developing soybeans with improved oil since 1991 and that's why we can deliver this improvement in varieties with the complete genetic package that farmers today demand," said John Soper, DuPont soybean research director.

Pioneer(R) variety 93M20 has undergone significant testing in the field and Pioneer is developing additional low linolenic varieties to meet demand.

NUTRIUM(TM) Low Lin has already passed critical taste and performance tests in food product applications.  Additional quantities of the oil will be available this fall for use in product development and testing.  Bunge expects to produce roughly 20 million pounds from the 2005 crop and have full-scale commercial availability, nearly 1 billion pounds, by 2009.

Contracts for growing Pioneer(R) brand 93M20 will be available this fall to U.S. Midwest farmers in select areas.  Those interested should contact Pioneer at 800-247-6803, extension 7014.  Food companies interested in learning more about NUTRIUM(TM) Low Lin should contact Bunge at 800-828-0800.

Bunge Limited is an integrated, global agribusiness and food company operating in the farm-to-consumer food chain.  Founded in 1818 and headquartered in White Plains, NY, Bunge has 24,000 employees and locations in 30 countries.  Bunge is the world's leading oilseed processing company, the largest producer and supplier of fertilizers to farmers in South America and the world's leading seller of bottled vegetable oils to consumers.

Bunge North America , the North American operating arm of Bunge Limited (NYSE: BG), is a vertically integrated food and feed ingredient company, supplying raw and processed agricultural commodities and specialized food ingredients to a wide range of customers in the livestock, poultry, food processor, foodservice and bakery industries.  With headquarters in St. Louis, Mo., Bunge North America and its subsidiaries operate grain elevators, grain and oilseed processing plants, edible oil refineries and packaging facilities in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc., a subsidiary of DuPont, is the world's leading source of customized solutions for farmers, livestock producers and grain and oilseed processors.  With headquarters in Des Moines, Iowa, Pioneer provides access to advanced plant genetics, crop protection solutions and quality crop systems to customers in nearly 70 countries.

DuPont is a science company.  Founded in 1802, DuPont puts science to work by creating sustainable solutions essential to a better, safer, healthier life for people everywhere.  Operating in more than 70 countries, DuPont offers a wide range of innovative products and services for markets including agriculture, nutrition, electronics, communications, safety and protection, home and construction, transportation and apparel.

(1) Registered trademark used under license from Monsanto
(R), (TM) Trademarks of Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc.