First-of-its-kind gallon bottling mechanism in the Middle East ensures maximum hygiene

100 per cent fresh, recyclable bottle every time with pure and natural Masafi mineral water

Dubai, June 25, 2007: Masafi, one of the leading FMCG brands in the Gulf and Middle East, has announced that it will shortly launch the four-gallon mineral water bottles - unique to the Middle East. Masafi, the leading brand of pure natural mineral water in the region for over 30 years, will soon unveil details about the unique gallon bottles which will be 100 per cent recyclable, completely revolutionizing the gallon mineral water bottling segment in the Middle East.

The non-returnable gallon bottles will guarantee 100 per cent purity in a 100 per cent fresh bottle, every time, anytime. The revolutionary bottles ensure a hygienic and safer option to refillable water gallon bottles that risk containing impurities or chemical residue as a result of the cleaning process they undergo before being filled and refilled.

The launch of Masafi gallon water is a significant step towards the company's evolution at becoming a complete FMCG brand by 2011 and signals its strategic growth direction.

Masafi has put into place a mechanism to deliver the innovative single-use gallon water bottles at the doorstep at home or office, besides strategic geographic outlets. The empty bottles will be collected by Masafi personnel and then recycled for non-food applications, making it 100 per cent environmental friendly.

In his comments, Mr Ashraf Abushady, Chief Executive Officer of Masafi, said: "We are excited to announce our plans to launch the Masafi gallon bottles -- a major step to serve the strong consumer demand for pure, natural mineral water in 4-gallon bottles. The innovative bottle packaging also revolutionizes the multi-gallon water packaging in the region and represents the strategic future direction for pure, natural mineral water."

He added: "The bottle is for one-time-use with no refills and hence no chemical residues, thereby making it more hygienic and safer. The bottles are completely recyclable and forms part of our concerted initiatives to safeguard the environment. More importantly, customers also save on a significant amount of money tied up as deposits for gallon bottles."

The specially designed bottle will epitomize Masafi's rich heritage and unique brand promise - 'Premium Products for Better Life' and designed to communicate the values which drives Masafi - 'Quality, Purity and Transparency'.

Masafi, which has successfully retained its market leadership in the UAE mineral water segment with more than 40% share, distributes approximately 20 million cases or 320 million bottles across UAE, which boasts of the highest per capital consumption of mineral water in the world. The revenues of the company were AED 273 million last year.

Nearly 30 per cent of Masafi mineral water is exported to different countries across the globe, including Japan, Oman, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Afghanistan, Djibouti, Germany, UK, Australia, Taiwan, Pakistan, Morocco, Yemen, Sudan, Bangladesh and the Ivory Coast.

Masafi had recently unveiled a new brand identity that signifies its evolution as a complete FMCG brand by 2011. As part of this new identity, Masafi has rolled out a new, refreshing look for water as part of its efforts to lead the mineral water category through innovative strategies.

The new brand logo encompasses all natural elements with a refreshing silver outline. The new brand identity simplifies and unifies the look and feel of Masafi in an effort to better communicate its vital characteristics and values to consumers.

As a firm, the company aspires to be a complete food and beverage company and intends on being present across all categories in this sector. Masafi aims to strengthen its market leadership through a process of continuous reinvestment and innovative manufacturing and distribution strategies.

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About Masafi:
Masafi, the leading producer of pure natural mineral water in the entire Gulf, was established in 1976 with a paid-up capital of approximately $5.5 million. The company has retained its market leadership for the past three decades by providing world-class products which are renowned for their pure natural freshness. This has seen Masafi become the premium reference for bottled mineral water in the entire region. In the process it has built an extremely strong distribution network to consistently deliver to dynamic market requirements and has continuously upgraded its first-class equipment to keep pace with technological advances around the globe.

Being a leading brand that delivers to consumer needs, Masafi's wide product portfolio includes mineral water, tissues, Masafi Juices and the newly-launched Masafi Flavoured Water. The mineral water product line comes in bottles of 1.5 litres, 1 litre, 500ml, 330ml (regular and sports), 330ml kids packaging (regular and sports); mineral water cups in sizes of 250ml, 200ml, and 125ml. The tissue line includes boutique fragrant tissues in three scents, floral tissues in purple, pink and green colors, and car tissue boxes, while the hugely popular Masafi Juices come in an array of original flavors and rich blends available in 2 litre, 1 litre and 200 ml bottles. The flavoured water is available in 3 flavours -- strawberry, lemon & peach in 500ml sizes.

The company was the first recipient of the ISO 9002 certification in the entire Middle East and was awarded the ISO 9001:2000 certification for developing and maintaining a high standard Quality Management System. Masafi has also been awarded the HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points) certification. Masafi is also a member of International Bottled Water Association (IBWA) and Asia Bottled Water Association (ABWA). Masafi Water is tested and approved by NSF International, USA, which carries out annual unprompted audits on behalf of IBWA. Masafi is the first mineral water company in the region to be awarded the prestigious ISO 14001 certification for Environmental Management.

For further information, please contact
Naeem Badiuzzaman,
PanGulf PR,
Dubai.
Tel: +9714-295 3456;
Fax: +9714-295 1027
E-mail: naeem@batespangulf.com

© Press Release 2007