Patent Infringement Settlement

The patent infringement lawsuit filed in the Federal Court of Australia by NatureSeal, Inc. against the Australian fruit processor, Avondale Foods Pty Limited of Orange, New South Wales, Australia has been settled. The patent, the subject of the Federal Court of Australia proceeding, was NatureSeal's Australian Patent 739039, entitled “Methods for Preserving Fresh Fruit”, which NatureSeal owns jointly with the United States Department of Agriculture. The patent covers methods for preserving fresh fruit with preservatives which extend the shelf life of fresh fruit. The patent is registered throughout the world. The settlement of the proceeding requires Avondale Foods to pay NatureSeal for damages for past infringement of the patent and the payment of NatureSeal's legal costs of the proceedings. Otherwise, the terms of the settlement are confidential to the parties and no further information about the terms of the settlement will be released by either party. President of NatureSeal, Inc., William Barrie, explained that “NatureSeal is obliged under its responsibilities to the USDA to police our patents world-wide.” Barrie contends that NatureSeal will continue to actively protect the intellectual property of its five patents. An agreement was recently reached with a New Zealand processor, who had inadvertently infringed on a NatureSeal patent. NatureSeal products have revolutionized the fresh cut industry. Starting with apples, the NatureSeal line of products now maintain the fresh qualities of over 30 cut produce items without compromising flavour. NatureSeal, Inc. and its subsidiary AgriCoat NatureSeal Ltd. are operating companies of RPM International Inc., a 5 billion dollar company traded on the NYSE.   For further informationSimon MathewsManaging DirectorAgriCoat NatureSeal LtdPh: +44 780 167 0250http://www.agricoat.co.uk