Yongye International Receives Awards Recognizing Products, Technology, and R&D Initiatives

BEIJING, Dec. 7, 2010 /PRNewswire-Asia-FirstCall/ -- Yongye International, Inc. (Nasdaq: YONG) ("Yongye" or the "Company"), a leading manufacturer, developer and distributor of "Shengmingsu" brand plant and animal nutrient products in China, today announced that it received two awards recognizing its products, technology and research and development ("R&D") initiatives.  

On November 4, 2010, Yongye's Shengmingsu plant and animal nutrient products received the "Special Houji Award" at the 17th Annual China Yangling Agricultural Hi-Tech Fair (the "CAF").  Yongye won the same award last year at the 16th Annual CAF.  The "Special Houji Award", which is named after "Houji", the god of agriculture in ancient Chinese mythology, is the top award conferred by the CAF.  Held every year in Yangling, Shaanxi Province, CAF is one of the largest and most prestigious agricultural fairs in China.  Established in 1994 and approved by the Chinese State Council in 1999, CAF is sponsored by 17 government ministries and several international organizations, such as the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Education, UNESCO, and the World Bank.

On November 18, 2010, Yongye's technology as well as its research and development and application of fulvic acid on green agriculture received the "2010 Award for Excellence in Science and Technology" from the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce (the "ACFIC Award").  The All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce ("ACFIC") was founded in 1953 and is the leading chamber of commerce in China.  The ACFIC's membership includes 12,326 trade groups and over one million corporate members across China.  The ACFIC Award aims to recognize and reward the innovations and achievements of non-state owned Chinese enterprises and encourage the growth and development of China's non-state owned enterprise sector.  Among the criteria assessed by the award committee were contribution to industry development, technology features, economic benefits of the innovation, and market recognition. Yongye was the only company from fertilizer/agricultural nutrient industry from all award winners. The full award results are available on the ACFIC's website at http://www.acfic.org.cn/publicfiles/business/htmlfiles/qggsl/bgt_qggslyw/201011/23419.html  

"We are honored to receive the CAF Special Houji Award, one of the most prestigious agriculture product awards in China, as well as the ACFIC Award in recognition of our technology, research and development initiatives, and Shengmingsu branded plant and animal nutrient products," stated Mr. Zishen Wu, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.  

"Our success is based on our product efficacy as well as our branding, national distribution and village level technical support.  Our Shengmingsu plant nutrient product helps increase crop yields, shorten harvest times, and extend the life-cycles of plants.  It also helps enhance crop taste, nutrition and appearance. In addition to our in-house testing facilities with a strong team of research personnel, we also form project partnerships with top agricultural universities and research institutes, such as the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing University of Agriculture, Inner Mongolia Academy of Agricultural Sciences, and Inner Mongolia Agriculture University.  

"We hold a patent on our Shengmingsu plant nutrient product. Fulvic acid is an important component of Shengmingsu, but its effectiveness is not only from fulvic acid itself.  It is the entire formula and manufacturing technology, which include other nutrients beneficial for crops, and which are covered by our patent, that differentiate our product. Our product's efficacy has been verified by various third party government and commercial testing and witnessed by farmers across China using Shengmingsu."

About Yongye International

Yongye International is a Chinese agricultural nutrient company headquartered in Beijing, with its production facilities located in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, China. Yongye markets two lines of organic nutrient products: a liquid nutrient product which is sprayed on plants and a powder nutrient product which is added to animal feed. Both products are sold under the brand name "Shengmingsu," which means "life essential" in Chinese. The Company's patented and patent pending formulas and proprietary extraction processes allow it to create products that increase crop yields and improve the health of livestock. The Company sells its products primarily to provincial or regional level distributors, who then channel those products to a carefully selected network of independently-owned Yongye branded stores in China. For more information, please visit the Company's website at http://www.yongyeintl.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains certain statements that may include "forward-looking statements." All statements other than statements of historical fact included herein are "forward-looking statements." These forward-looking statements are often identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "believes," "expects" or similar expressions, involving known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, they do involve assumptions, risks and uncertainties, and these expectations may prove to be incorrect. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. The Company's actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of a variety of factors, including the risk factors discussed in the Company's periodic reports that are filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and available on the SEC's website (http://www.sec.gov). All forward-looking statements attributable to the Company or persons acting on its behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by these risk factors. Other than as required under the securities laws, the Company does not assume a duty to update these forward-looking statements.

SOURCE Yongye International, Inc.