Easy Gardener Makes A Natural Debut With Ingeo

MINNETONKA, Minn., February 8, 2007  --  Exhibiting for the first time at the Garden Press Event, Easy Gardener will be making its mark with an exciting new product launch. After three years of intensive development work with US-based NatureWorks LLC, Easy Gardener has succeeded in creating the world’s first weed control product made from renewable resources.

Unlike its entirely oil-based predecessors, 70% of WeedBlock® Natural is made from the new Ingeo fibre, which is derived from 100% annually renewable resources.

The best that technology currently offers, this innovative new development will allow the consumer the option to use a weed control product with a substantially reduced environmental footprint, without sacrificing the high performance that has become synonymous with Easy Gardener’s WeedBlock brand.  As well as eco-credentials, WeedBlock Natural excels at preventing weeds, allows water through to the soil beneath and is guaranteed to last over 10 years.

It is WeedBlock Natural’s use of an Ingeo fabric that makes this product truly unique. Ingeo, that means ingredients from the Earth, is a nature-based fiber derived entirely from more sustainable agricultural resources like corn. Created from NatureWorks polymer, the most reduced greenhouse gas plastic polymer commercially available, Ingeo is the world’s first man-made fiber derived entirely from a 100% annually renewable resource, rather than from our limited petroleum deposits.

This is the first time Easy Gardener has ever exhibited at the RHS Garden Press Event and the first ever public appearance for WeedBlock Natural.  Daniel Boxser, Managing Director of Easy Gardener UK, comments: “Easy Gardener chose London as its launch pad for the new WeedBlock Natural because the UK has one of the most forward-thinking, eco-aware consumer groups in the world. While we look forward to taking WeedBlock Natural to the US and to customers worldwide, we expect the product to make more immediate impact here and we are particularly delighted to have the opportunity to preview this fantastic new product to the UK press at this prestigious show.”

During the Garden Press Event, NatureWorks LLC will present also a wedding dress made of Ingeo fabric, showing the creative potential and the wide range of possible applications of the NatureWorks® biopolymer. The dress was designed by Franco Francesca and sponsored by Coldiretti, one of the main agricultural associations in Europe.

WeedBlock Natural costs £14.95 for a 12m x 0.9m roll and is currently available through B&Q stores.  However, this product will also be available at several garden centres and independent stockists later in the season. For further information, please call 020 7225 5040 or visit www.easygardener.co.uk.

For every 10,000 rolls of Natural WeedBlock used, the world will save over 5.000 litres of petrol.

About NatureWorks LLC
NatureWorks LLC is a stand-alone company wholly owned by Cargill. Dedicated to meeting the world’s needs today without compromising the earth’s ability to meet the needs of tomorrow, NatureWorks LLC is the first company to offer a family of commercially available low carbon footprint polymers derived from 100 percent annually renewable resources with cost and performance that compete with petroleum-based packaging materials and fibers. The company applies its unique technology to the processing of natural plant sugars to create a proprietary polylactide polymer, which is marketed under the NatureWorks polymer and Ingeo fibers brand names. www.natureworksllc.com.

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NatureWorks, Ingeo and the Ingeo logo are trademarks or registered trademarks in the USA and other countries.