SunOpta Inc. Announces Exclusive Distribution Agreement for Acai Fruit Pulp

Acai is a dark purple berry that is rich in nutrients and growsatop the millions of palm trees in the Brazilian Amazon. The fruit iswild-harvested by local farmers and processed into a fruit pulp whichis quick frozen to retain its nutritional properties. Acai berriescontain a very high concentration of anthocyanins, the sameantioxidants that give red wine its health benefits, as well asgenerous amounts of protein, fiber, and omega-6 and omega-9 fattyacids. For those reasons, the Acai fruit has been gaining considerablepopularity worldwide.

Jeremy Kendall, Chairman and CEO of SunOpta Inc., stated, "We arepleased to partner with Sambazon Acai to broaden the distribution ofthis remarkably nutritious food on the North American continent. Theaddition of Acai to our already extensive line of natural andorganically grown foods and food ingredients provides us with anothervery unique food source that offers a healthy ingredient to ourcustomers. This is one of our core values as a company. SunOptaexpects revenue in the first year to be between U.S. $1 and U.S. $1.5million."

Joseph Stern, President of Organic Ingredients and Vice Presidentof the SunOpta Fruit Group, said, "Adding organic Acai pulp to ouralready extensive line of organic offerings will enable us to continueto be a leader in the development of organic private label fruit juiceproducts for major retail grocery chains, food manufacturers anddistributors in North America. In addition, the exclusive supply oforganic Acai pulp will provide a valuable industrial ingredient thatcan be used in a wide range of food and beverage applications."

Ryan Black, CEO and Founder of Sambazon Acai, said, "We lookforward to working with the SunOpta Fruit Group to dramaticallyincrease the awareness and appeal of this remarkably nutritious fruit.With a distinct flavor of vibrant berries and a hint of chocolate,coupled with its extraordinary antioxidant properties, we firmlybelieve that Acai will become widely accepted and sought after byconsumers.

Mr. Black continued, "Sambazon's sustainable business model allowsus to supply this exciting new food to the North American market whilehelping thousands of native families protect biodiversity in therainforest while providing a livelihood for their families."

About Sambazon

Sambazon is the global leader in Acai consumer products, wholesaleAcai pulp, powder and other Amazon superfoods. Founded in 2000 as thefirst company to bring the antioxidant-rich Acai berry from the Amazonto North America, Sambazon's mission is to deliver high quality,organic superfood products to the planet. Sambazon's product line ofOrganic Smoothies, Frozen Smoothie Packs, Ready-to-Blend Concentrates,Acai PowerCaps(TM) and Acai PowerScoop(TM) are enjoyed by world-classathletes and health-conscious consumers everywhere. Products areavailable at major retail stores and juice bars across North Americaincluding Whole Foods, Wild Oats, Vitamin Shoppe, Jamba Juice, GNC andJuice It Up! Sambazon has pioneered the first of its kind Fair Tradeand Certified Organic supply chain of Acai which benefits thousands oflocal families and protects the biodiversity of the Amazon Rainforestthrough sustainable agriculture. For more information on Sambazon Acaiand to learn more about sustainable development in the Amazon visitwww.sambazon.com.

About SunOpta Inc.

SunOpta Inc. is an operator of high-growth ethical businesses,focusing on integrated business models in the natural and organic foodmarkets. For the last seven consecutive years, SunOpta was included inProfit magazine's 'Profit 100' list of the 100 fastest growingcompanies in Canada. The Company has three business units: the SunOptaFood Group, which specializes in sourcing, processing and distributionof natural and organic food products integrated from seed throughpackaged products; the Opta Minerals Group, a producer, distributor,and recycler of environmentally friendly industrial materials; and theSunOpta BioProcess Group which engineers and markets proprietary steamexplosion technology systems for the pulp, bio-fuel and foodprocessing industries. Each of these business units has proprietaryproducts and services that give it a solid competitive advantage inits sector.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements included in this press release may constitute"forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United StatesPrivate Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Theseforward-looking statements include, but are not limited to referencesto business strategies, competitive strengths, goals, capitalexpenditure plans, business and operational growth plans andreferences to the future growth of the business. These forward lookingstatements are based on certain assumptions and analyses made by theCompany in light of its experience and its interpretation of currentconditions, historical trends and expected future developments as wellas other factors that the Company believes are appropriate in thecircumstance. However, whether actual results and developments willagree with expectations and predications of the Company is subject tomany risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to; generaleconomic, business or market risk conditions; competitive actions byother companies; changes in laws or regulations or policies of localgovernments, provinces and states as well as the governments of UnitedStates and Canada, many of which are beyond the control of theCompany. Consequently all forward-looking statements made herein arequalified by these cautionary statements and there can be no assurancethat the actual results or developments anticipated by the Companywill be realized.