S&W Seed to Acquire 114 Acres in Imperial Valley

FIVE POINTS, Calif., Feb. 21, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- S&W Seed Company (Nasdaq: SANW) announced today that it will acquire an additional 114 acres of producing farmland in Calipatria, California, located in the Imperial Valley. The purchase is being made to further expand production of S&W's proprietary alfalfa seed varieties and to effect synergies at its Imperial Valley farming operations, which were launched in 2012. The newly acquired farmland will be placed into S&W's proprietary alfalfa seed production commencing with the 2013-2014 season. 

Mark Grewal, chief executive officer of S&W Seed Company, commented, "We continue to stay focused on expanding production, while keeping our gross margin expansion initiative sharply in focus. The addition of farmland in Imperial Valley is one component to reach our goals by leveraging our existing contracted farming team that is stationed in the valley. The incremental acreage base should provide for net incremental margin improvement into the future."

Mr. Grewal continued, "There are a number of opportunities that we are looking at that have the potential to significantly increase our seed production capabilities going forward. This purchase is a modest step in our efforts to expand seed production and sourcing beyond the 9 to 10 million pounds annually that we have recently outlined. Given the very strong demand for our varieties, we look forward to becoming the 'go-to' provider for alfalfa farmers for years to come."

The purchase price of the 114 acres of land and associated water rights is approximately $0.83 million and is expected to close in March 2013.

About S&W Seed Company
Founded in 1980 and headquartered in the Central Valley of California, S&W Seed Company is a leading producer of warm climate, high yield alfalfa seed varieties, including varieties that can thrive in poor, saline soils, as verified over decades of university-sponsored trials. S&W Seed also offers seed cleaning and processing at its 40-acre facility in Five Points, California and, in 2011, began the commercial launch of its California-based stevia business in response to the growing global demand for the all-natural, zero calorie sweetener from the food and beverage industry. For more information, please visit www.swseedco.com.

Safe Harbor Statement
This release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended and such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. "Forward-looking statements" describe future expectations, plans, results, or strategies and are generally preceded by words such as "may," "future," "plan" or "planned," "will" or "should," "expected," "anticipates," "draft," "eventually" or "projected." You are cautioned that such statements are subject to a multitude of risks and uncertainties that could cause future circumstances, events, or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements, including the risks that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors and other risks identified in the Company's 10-K for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2012, and other filings made by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

SOURCE S&W Seed Company