Unilever tekent overeenkomst met Ampere Life Sciences

UNILEVER SIGNS DEAL WITH AMPERE LIFE SCIENCES

Open Innovation in Healthy Ageing

Unilever today announced that it has entered into a partnership with Silicon Valley-based Ampere Life Sciences to access Ampere’s Digital Biology™ technology platform and secure exclusive rights for the development of innovative consumer products. Terms of the transaction are not being disclosed.

The 5-year initiative will bring together a worldwide team of Unilever and Ampere scientists working on the core biology of ageing. The programme is targeting a range of benefit areas of interest to Unilever.

Unilever’s Chief R&D Officer, Genevieve Berger said, “This deal is an example of Unilever’s approach to open innovation, partnering scientists from outside Unilever with specific biotech assets and knowledge with our own in-house science and development experts based in our six core laboratories across the world.

I see the key benefits of this partnership with Ampere being a commitment to develop superior products across a number of categories and exclusivity that will potentially give us competitive advantage in the marketplace”.

As consumer demand for healthy living and ageing products increases, Unilever is strategically positioning itself to meet this need through combining its own considerable R&D resource with complimentary technical assets. Ampere’s technology platform will enable Unilever to build differentiated antioxidant-containing products spanning multiple product categories.

Work on the project will begin immediately.

About Unilever

Unilever works to create a better future every day. We help people feel good, look good and get more out of life with brands and services that are good for them and good for others.

We are one of the world’s leading suppliers of fast moving consumer goods with strong local roots in more than 100 countries.  Our portfolio includes some of the world’s best known and most loved brands including eleven
€1 billion brands, and global leadership in many categories in which we operate. The portfolio features iconic brands such as: Knorr, Lipton, Becel/Flora, Blue Band/Rama/Country Crock, Wall’s/OLA/Langnese, Hellmann’s, Calvé, Unox, Dove, Pond’s, Lux, Axe/Lynx, Sunsilk, Vaseline, Rexona/Sure, Omo, Surf, Cif, and Glorix/Domestos.

We have around 163,000 employees in approaching 100 countries, and generated annual sales of €40 billion in 2009.  For more information about Unilever and its brands, please visit www.unilever.com.

SAFE HARBOUR

This document may contain forward-looking statements, including ‘forward-looking statements’ within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as ‘expects’, ‘anticipates’, ‘intends’, ‘believes’ or the negative of these terms and other similar expressions of future performance or results, including any financial objectives, and their negatives are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based upon current expectations and assumptions regarding anticipated developments and other factors affecting the Group. They are not historical facts, nor are they guarantees of future performance. Because these forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, there are important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements, including, among others, competitive pricing and activities, economic slowdown, industry consolidation, access to credit markets, recruitment levels, reputational risks, commodity prices, continued availability of raw materials, prioritization of projects, consumption levels, costs, the ability to maintain and manage key customer relationships and supply chain sources, consumer demands, currency values, interest rates, the ability to integrate acquisitions and complete planned divestitures, the ability to complete planned restructuring activities, physical risks, environmental risks, the ability to manage regulatory, tax and legal matters and resolve pending matters within current estimates, legislative, fiscal and regulatory developments, political, economic and social conditions in the geographic markets where the Group operates and new or changed priorities of the Boards. Further details of potential risks and uncertainties affecting the Group are described in the Group’s filings with the London Stock Exchange, Euronext Amsterdam and the US Securities and Exchange Commission, including the 20-F Report and the Annual Report and Accounts 2009. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this announcement. Except as required by any applicable law or regulation, the Group expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in the Group’s expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.