BAINBRIDGE ISLAND, Wash. – October 3, 2012 – Teragren (www.teragren.com), the nation’s leading manufacturer of fine bamboo flooring, panels, veneer and worktops, has earned the USDA Certified Biobased Product Label for their complete line of bamboo building products. The USDA Certified Biobased Product Label verifies that the products’ amount of renewable biobased ingredients meets or exceeds prescribed USDA levels. Biobased products are goods composed in whole or in significant part of agricultural, forestry, or marine materials. The purpose of the USDA BioPreferred® program is to promote the increased purchase and use of biobased products. The increased purchase of biobased products is expected to reduce petroleum consumption, increase the use of renewable resources, better manage the carbon cycle, and may contribute to reducing adverse environmental and health impacts. “We are very excited that our products have tested at such a high biobased content, and are looking forward to proudly displaying the USDA BioPreferred label on all of our products going forward” said Teragren President Mike Boshart. The label (below) is estimated to be on certified Teragren products and available to consumers by early 2013. Teragren’s bamboo products tested at the following levels, by category: PureForm Traditional Bamboo Flooring with 99% biobased content Xcora Strand Bamboo Flooring with 94% biobased content Bamboo Worktops with 99% biobased content PureForm Traditional Bamboo Veneer with 99% biobased content Architectural Bamboo Panels with 99% biobased content All biobased amount claims are verified by independent labs and monitored by the USDA. Consumers may feel secure in the accuracy of the biobased amount and be empowered in making better informed purchasing decisions. “We have always known that rapidly renewable moso bamboo pulls carbon out of circulation and contributes significantly to global oxygen replenishment” said Boshart. “Having the biobased content of Teragren products verified by a third party is the next step in communicating this valuable message to specifiers and consumers.” The BioPreferred Program includes a preferred procurement program for Federal agencies and their contractors, who are required to give preferential consideration to USDA biobased designated product categories when making purchases. As a part of this process of designating product categories for the Federal procurement preference, USDA establishes the minimum biobased content for the category. Information on the technical, health, and environmental characteristics of these products are also considered. Additionally, Presidential Executive Order 13514, Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy, and Economic Performance, mandates the purchasing of biobased products. "We are pleased that Teragren Fine Bamboo Flooring, Panels and Veneer has earned the USDA Certified Biobased Product Label," said Ron Buckhalt, USDA BioPreferred Program Manager. "Biobased products provide opportunities to help add value to renewable commodities, create jobs in rural communities and generate investment income."