SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA, U.S. — NutraCea announced on Dec. 20 that the company has entered into a settlement and release agreement with its former President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Bradley D. Edson, who resigned his posts with NutraCea on March 9, 2009.

Pursuant to the settlement agreement, Edson agreed to pay NutraCea $350,000. As partial payment, Edson assigned to NutraCea all of his remaining NutraCea common shares and all of his 6,000,000 options to purchase NutraCea stock. Edson agreed to pay the remaining balance in cash by no later than Dec. 31, 2011.


Commenting on the settlement, W. John Short, chairman and CEO of NutraCea said, "We are glad to put this matter behind us. While a settlement is a compromise, we are pleased to recover the 6,000,000 stock options previously held by Mr. Edson, which represent nearly 3% of NutraCea's outstanding common shares, and to sever all ties between Mr. Edson and NutraCea. This settlement will avoid further legal expense for NutraCea and allows us to focus our management and financial resources on completing the restructuring of our business."