Urban Barns Foods Technology Reduces Water Usage by More Than 90% Over Traditional Agriculture Processes

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, April 13, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Urban Barns Foods Inc. (URBF.OB) ("Company" or "Urban Barns"), a leading authority on sustainable development of fresh fruits and vegetables, today released additional test results stemming from its planned acquisition of Non Industrial Manufacturing originally announced on March 8, 2011. The results relate to water usage and conservation rates as compared to traditional farming techniques which further prove that this new and proprietary technology is ready for large scale commercial production of food.

Mr. Jacob Benne, CEO of Urban Barns, stated, "We continue to be very impressed with this technology and the results it's producing. Water is obviously a huge issue and input cost for farms around the world. The water usage footprint of this technology is very low indeed because of the techniques used in growing the plants. In our case the water that is not specifically used by the plant is recycled into the top of the system so that none is wasted as opposed to traditional farming where once the water has dripped off the leaves and flows past the root system approximately ninety percent (90%) flows into the ground water and into our lakes and rivers."

Mr. Dan Meikleham, Chairman and CFO of Urban Barns, said, "The cost of water is an enormous issue for all resource based businesses and is quickly becoming a major global concern according to 'The Canadian Partnership of the UN Water for Life'. In a 2006 report issued by the United Nations' Food & Agriculture Organization Statistic they show that agriculture is the heaviest user of fresh water. While Canada uses only 12% of its fresh water for agriculture, and America at 41%, other countries such as Saudi Arabia use 89%, Mexico 77%, Australia at 75% and Yemen a staggering 95%. The report summarizes that if we don't curtail our waste of water, food shortages are sure to follow. We are very pleased to report that NIM's proprietary vertical farming system offers a dramatic reduction in water usage as compared to traditional farming methods and is a highly scalable commercial solution to the problem. According to a USDA 2008 study of farm land under irrigation, the total need for water (on average across all crop varieties) was 17 liters (4.25 gallons) per plant whereas URBF's findings of the NIM technology reduce water usage to 1.72 liters (.45 gallons) which is a 90% savings. In an earlier press release we stated that the NIM Equipment has a total production capability of 59 times that of traditional farming, meaning that while a traditional farm is able to produce 193,000 heads of lettuce per year from single acre of land, NIM's technology is able to produce some 11,750,000 heads of lettuce within a 1 acre space. When you put both facts together over the course of growing those 11,750,000 heads of lettuce we will save better than 172 million liters or 44 million gallons of water."  

Mr. Meikleham added, "We will continue to analyze and release additional related data regarding energy and the CO2 footprint of traditional farming environments as compared to our technology. We continue our objective, which is to explore the capabilities of our vertical growing system designed to utilize urban warehouse environments."

About Urban Barns Foods Inc.:

Urban Barns uses proprietary equipment to produce affordable fruits and vegetables in a secure and controlled indoor environment. By setting up subsidiary facilities and growing locally, Urban Barns can focus on supplying any community, irrespective of the regional climate, effectively reducing shipping times and related spoilage costs. Urban Barns has the unique ability to scale and cater to the demands of all major communities. Our commitment to our consumers is reflected through our motto, "Purely Fresh, Naturally Tasty, and Completely Healthy." Urban Barns and Urbanbarnsfoods.com are registered trademarks and the copyright of Urban Barns. All other company and product names mentioned are used only for identification purposes and may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.

Forward-Looking Statements:

Except for historical information contained herein, the matters set forth above may be forward-looking statements that involve certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from those in the forward-looking statements. Words such as "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect", "intend" and similar expressions, as they relate to Urban Barns or its management, identify forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on the current beliefs of management, as well as assumptions made by and information currently available to management. Actual results could differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors such as the level of business and consumer spending, the amount of sales of Urban Barns' products, the competitive environment within the industry, the ability of Urban Barns to continue to expand its operations, the level of costs incurred in connection with Urban Barns' expansion efforts, economic conditions in the industry and the financial strength of Urban Barns' customers and suppliers. Urban Barns does not undertake any obligation to update such forward-looking statements. Investors are also directed to consider all other risks and uncertainties.

SOURCE Urban Barns Foods Inc.