22nd Century Group, Inc. (OTCBB:XXII)
today announced that it has purchased all of the equipment at a
cigarette manufacturing facility in Mocksville, North Carolina. Until
now, 22nd Century Group’s subsidiary, Goodrich Tobacco Company, had
produced all of its products through contract manufacturers.
22nd Century Group and NASCO Products, LLC entered into a lease
agreement for the 61,500 square foot manufacturing facility this past
October. “This turnkey facility will speed up our own production and
distribution of our brands by at least 6 months,” stated Joseph
Pandolfino, Founder and CEO of 22nd Century Group. 22nd Century plans to
first manufacture SPECTRUM research cigarettes within the next 30
days and shortly thereafter begin production of its RED SUN and MAGIC
super-premium brands. The Company also expects to enter into a
manufacturing agreement with a strategic partner and to begin exporting
its products later in 2014.
As reported
last September, 22nd Century Group and NASCO Products entered into a
binding agreement for 22nd Century Group to purchase NASCO Products.
NASCO Products, a federally licensed tobacco product manufacturer, is
also a participating member of the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement
known as the MSA, an agreement among 46 U.S. states and the tobacco
industry administered by the National Association of Attorneys General
(NAAG). Mr. Pandolfino added, “22nd Century is working with NAAG to
obtain the consent of the attorneys general for our acquisition of NASCO
Products and we have made great progress over the last few weeks.”
22nd Century Group will immediately start hiring key personnel formerly
employed at the factory, which was producing cigarettes up until August
2013. The Company believes that having its own factory will create
tremendous shareholder value since control and production of its
differentiated tobacco products will be greatly facilitated and costs
will be reduced.
Terry Bralley, President of Davie County Economic Development
Commission, stated, “We welcome 22nd Century Group to North Carolina. As
a growing and innovative publicly-traded company, 22nd Century will
rejuvenate one of North Carolina’s important manufacturing enterprises.
This is exceedingly good news and will assist us in restoring jobs to
Davie County.”
22nd Century Group’s legal team was led by William F. Savino of Damon
Morey LLP. The Company’s winning bid in the Chapter 7 bankruptcy
proceeding was $3.22 million, $50,000 more than the losing bid. The
Order was signed by the Honorable William
L. Stocks on December 2, 2013. Approximately one-third of the
manufacturing equipment purchased will not be needed and is expected to
be sold to other parties that have already expressed interest.
For additional information, please visit: www.xxiicentury.com
About 22nd Century Group, Inc.
22nd Century is a plant biotechnology company whose proprietary
technology allows for the levels of nicotine and other nicotinic
alkaloids (e.g., nornicotine, anatabine and anabasine) in the tobacco
plant to be decreased or increased through genetic engineering and plant
breeding. 22nd Century owns or is the exclusive licensee of 114 issued
patents in 78 countries plus an additional 36 pending patent
applications. Goodrich Tobacco Company, LLC and Hercules
Pharmaceuticals, LLC are wholly-owned subsidiaries of 22nd Century.
Goodrich Tobacco is focused on commercial tobacco products and potential
less harmful cigarettes. Hercules Pharmaceuticals is focused on X-22,
a prescription smoking cessation aid in development.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements: This press
release contains forward-looking information, including all statements
that are not statements of historical fact regarding the intent, belief
or current expectations of 22nd Century Group, Inc., its directors or
its officers with respect to the contents of this press release. The
words “may,” “would,” “will,” “expect,” “estimate,” “anticipate,”
“believe,” “intend” and similar expressions and variations thereof are
intended to identify forward-looking statements. We cannot guarantee
future results, levels of activity or performance. You should not place
undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as
of the date that they were made. These cautionary statements should be
considered with any written or oral forward-looking statements that we
may issue in the future. Except as required by applicable law, including
the securities laws of the United States, we do not intend to update any
of the forward-looking statements to conform these statements to reflect
actual results, later events or circumstances, or to reflect the
occurrence of unanticipated events. You should carefully review and
consider the various disclosures made by us in our annual report on Form
10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2012, filed on March 18,
2013, including the section entitled “Risk Factors,” and our other
reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission which
attempt to advise interested parties of the risks and factors that may
affect our business, financial condition, results of operation and cash
flows. If one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or if
the underlying assumptions prove incorrect, our actual results may vary
materially from those expected or projected.
Copyright Business Wire 2013