A Message from our Chairman–CEO

Thomas D. Davis Chairman, President & Chief Executive Officer

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Viskase Companies, Inc. was founded in Chicago, Illinois in 1925, originally as The Visking Company, when we invented and introduced the first synthetic sausage casing made from regenerated cellulose. This product was a revolutionary step forward in the meat processing industry. It allowed for large gains in productivity and efficiency to manufacture ready-to-eat meat products. In the years since, the Company has continued to put emphasis on innovation as we intro-duced new products, new concepts, and product adaptations to fit our customer’s needs. Expanding into new markets, and growing our business in existing markets, has led us to becoming the company we are today; focused on helping our customers bring safe and affordable protein sources to people around the world.

As worldwide demand continues to grow, Viskase is investing in the capacity to meet that demand. This includes investments in new facilities to provide better customer service around the globe. We built a new facility in the Philippines that will reduce order lead times for our customers in this region, while providing greater flexibility with their orders than was possible before. We have also moved into a new facility in Brazil to meet the growth in demand for all of our product lines in South America. To further improve our custo-mer service, we maintain technical service groups

around the world to provide the support our customers need to achieve maximum benefit from our products. Looking ahead, we are investing in technology to improve the quality of our existing products lines as well as developing innovative new products.

As a leading supplier to the industry worldwide, our business philosophy is to be a true partner with our customers. We not only deliver casings, but also excel-lent customer service, quality and innovation. We will continue to invest in R&D and continuous improve-ment throughout all aspects of our business. Our updated mission statement makes clear what Viskase core values are: a strong focus on the needs of our customers while simultaneously respecting the needs of our valued employees and the environ-ment.

Viskase Companies, Inc. will continue to strive to be the worldwide market leader of cellulose and plastic casings, and provide the highest value and service to our customers every day.

• Market leadership on a global basis

• Delivering premium value through continuing innovation

• Building long-term relationships with our customers and employees

• Protection of the environment and safety at every level of our operations

• Employees that personify our culture of commitment, initiative, honesty,and integrity

ViskaseMissionStatement

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The BeginningErwin O. Freund, the founder of what is known today as Viskase® Companies, Inc. discovered he could make an artificial sausage casing that could be used to replace animal intestine casings. The cellulosic casing stuffed well, could be linked and was able to withstand the rigors of the smokehouse. Quite by accident, he discovered that when the casing was removed from the product, the sausages retained their shape and were firm. The skinless sausage was born!

In 1925, Mr. Freund organized a company by the name of Visking Corporation and the first production line for NOJAX® Casings began in a ramshackle building located in the heart of the Chicago Union Stockyards.

A History of Casing InnovationsRemaining ever close to the needs of the processed meat industry, Visking Corporation introduced Large Cellulose Casings in 1927.

The first colored casings were introduced in 1931, along with a method to print on the casings for brand identity and advertising promotions in the meat case. With this growth and prosperity came a new plant in Chicago in 1932.

FIBROUS Casings were developed and launched in the years following the Chicago plant opening. These casings were made by impregnating a fiber-reinforced web with regenerated cellulose, resulting in an extre-mely strong and uniform casing.

In the 1950’s, Visking debuted striped NOJAX® Casing and E-Z PEEL® FIBROUS Casings, while opening plants in Beauvais, France and Loudon, Tennessee.

To help meat processors improve their productivity, the SHIRMATIC® system of FIBROUS Casings was intro-duced in the 1960’s. With this combination of automa-ted stuffing equipment and pre-moisturized shirred casings, processors could now make uniform diame-ter products with greater efficiencies.

During the 1970’s, Viskase was the first company to manufacture E-Z PEEL NOJAX® Casings again improving our customer’s productivity. In addition to product development, meeting the world’s expanding global market became a real challenge. The company responded by opening operations in Thaon, France; Osceola, Arkansas and Kentland, Indiana.

In the 2000's, to continue providing the best in product development, support and services with strategic locations throughout the world, our new facilities were opened in Monterrey, Mexico; Atibaia, Brazil and Clark Freeport Zone, Philippines.

Having been part of Union Carbide since 1956, the company changed owners in 1986 and became Viskase Corporation. Despite the changes, innova-tion was key and Viskase set a new standard with the invention of E-Z SMOKE® FIBROUS Casings.

In the 1990’s, development efforts continued as Viska-se entered into the arena of plastic casings. VISFLEX® and VISMAX® Casings were two innovati-ve products launched to satisfy a market need.

In the 21st century, Viskase® continues to reach new heights with dynamic, market responsive product additions.

New Innovations

VISCOAT® Casings are a unique combination of plastic and fiber-reinforced materials to provide a means of adding color and smoke flavor during processing, all with the convenience of a cook and ship barrier package.

POLYJAX® small diameter plastic casings are the latest in our long history of new products designed to meet our customer’s needs.

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History reveals that our successhas always been directly related tothe success of our customers.

This is why Viskase® continues to devote its resources to satisfying the ever changing requirements of the industry. Staffing Food Science Labs in North America and Eu- rope is an important component of this effort. The future of our company begins today; with resear-ch, innovation and improvement for the purpose of meeting tomorrow’s requirements.

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NOJAX®

Cellulose CasingsNOJAX® casings are made of regenerated cellulose designed for high speed, automated production of hot dogs, dry mini salamis, cooked sausages and coarse ground fresh sausages. The casings come as shirred sticks for use on all stuffing equipment, as-is with no soaking required.

Characteristics• High strength to resist breakage

• Outstanding size uniformity

• Permeable to smoke and moisture

• Excellent end closures

• Barrier to microorganisms*

*When casing has not been cut or perforated

Features

– Regular NOJAX® Casing is a standard product and does not contain a peeling treatment.

– E-Z PEEL® NOJAX® Ensures perfect casing removal for high speed peeling.

– Self-Coloring NOJAX® Casings are available in Dark Cherry and Light Orange to impart food grade color to the surface of the stuffed product. These products are for selected markets; contact your Viskase Representative for availability.

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Size Range: Stuffing diameters 14 – 47 mm.

Color Range: NOJAX® Casings are offered in non-transferable Sentry (blue), Sentinel® (blue with clear window), Wedzone (smoke tint) colors or with stripes for product differentiation as well as to afford a visual check of complete peeling.

Treatments: NOJAX® casings are offered in a variety of value-added treatments.

NOJAX® Cellulose Casings are available with closed-ends ideal for automatic stuffing equipment or with open-ends for manual stuffing.

Characteristics• Permeability to smoke and water vapor

• Exceptional clarity and glossy surface giving an attractive and shiny appearance to finished products

• Various degrees of stretch: casings adapt to finished product shape requirements

• Barrier to microorganisms*

*When casing has not been cut or perforated

Features

– E-Z PEEL® is an internal treatment to promote easy release of the casing from the final product. The casing lifts away from the product quickly and cleanly, leaving no scarring of the product surface.

– DS/SL has an inner surface treatment designed to promote adhesion to proteins.

Large Cellulose Casings (LCC)Large Cellulose Casings (LCC) provide a cylindrical or oval shape to processed meat products such as bologna and salami.

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Size Range: Stuffing diameters 34 – 250 mm.

Varieties: Low stretch R and Precision casings. High stretch ZEPHYR®, VISREX™ and HS casings.

Color Range: Large Cellulose Casings are offered in different colors to meet your product needs. Standard colors available: Clear and Fumé (Hickory).

Treatments: A variety of casing treatments have been tailored to provide meat adhesion or quick release after cooking/cooling.

FIBROUS CasingsFIBROUS Casings are a unique combination of regenerated cellulose applied to a special paper for exceptional strength and diameter uniformity. These casings can be used for a wide range of applications including pepperoni, salami, luncheon meats, boneless hams and other deli-style processed meats. They are ideal for slicing products requiring precise diameter control. FIBROUS Casings can also be used for processed and smoked cheeses.

Characteristics• Exceptional mechanical strength,

even with presticking

• Outstanding size uniformity

• Permeable to smoke and moisture

• Barrier to microorganisms*

*When casing has not been cut or perforated

Features

– E-Z PEEL® FIBROUS is an internal treatment to promote easy release of the casing from the final product. The casing lifts away from the product quickly and cleanly, leaving no scarring of the product surface.

– DS/SL FIBROUS has an inner surface treatment designed to promote adhesion to the product surface.

– ML FIBROUS is our newest peeling treatment— tailored for dried and semi dried products.

– FIBROUS SMOKE MASTER® reduces processing times by adding the liquid smoke color and flavor directly to the final product.

– FIBROUS COLOR MASTER™ imparts an appealing golden roasted or traditional dark smoke color to the product.

– MOISTURE PROOF (MP™): FIBROUS casings witha coating applied to the casing surface for moistureand oxygen barrier properties.

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Size Range: Stuffing diameters 36 – 200 mm.

Colors: A wide range of standard colors are available to meet all your product needs.

Treatments: A variety of casing treatments have been tailored to provide meat adhesion or quick release after cooking/cooling.

Characteristics• Excellent Shirred Stick Properties: easy handling

with less stick breakage

• High Barrier Properties: minimizes weight loss during cooking/processing as well as extends product shelf life

• Caliber Uniformity: provides exceptional size control to minimize giveaway

• Peeling: allows easy, complete hand peeling of the casing from the final product

• Packaging: sticks are in an easy to open, easy to load caddy or in netting

• Barrier to microorganisms*

*When casing has not been cut or perforated

FeaturesSize Range: Casing sizes 16 – 40 mm.

Color Range: Clear as well as non-transferable Wedzone (smoke tint), light Wedzone, HT Redand light Orange.

For other colors, please contact your Viskase Representative.

POLYJAX®

POLYJAX® Plastic Casings are madefrom polyamide resins, designedfor the high-speed productionof hot dog, sausage and chorizoproducts. Ideal for automatedequipment, POLYJAX® Plastic Casingsare offered as shirred sticks with nosoaking required prior to use.

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PlasticCasings

VISFLEX®

PlasticCasingsVISFLEX® Plastic Casings are high performance casings for a wide range of processed meat, poultry and cheese applications. Manufactured using multilayer extrusion technology, VISFLEX® Plastic Casings are tailored to meet the processing and shelf storage requirements for a variety of products. Exceptional barrier and shrink properties make VISFLEX ® Plastic Casings ideal for water, steam and smokehouse processing.

Characteristics• High Oxygen Barrier: extends the shelf life of the

product

• Moisture Barrier: minimizes water migration through the film, maximizes product yield during cooking, and prevents weight loss during storage

• Diameter Control: provides diameter uniformity at stuffing, consistent product dimensions enable optimum productivity and reduced product giveaway

• Meat adhesion to minimize purge, while allowing peeling of final product

FeaturesSize Range: Stuffing diameters 38 – 206 mm.

Color range: A wide selection of colors is available to meet your specific product needs.

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Characteristics• Exceptionally High Oxygen Barrier: maximizes

product shelf life, protects against surface oxidation and discoloration

• Moisture Barrier: virtually eliminates water migration, maximizes product yield during cooking, and prevents weight loss during storage

• Optimized shrink: tailored specifically for molded products to maximize slicing yields and enables D-shaped products to maintain shape during cooking

• Meat adhesion to minimize purge, while allowing peeling of final product

FeaturesSize Range: Available in flat widths 115 – 400 mm.

Color Range: A wide selection of colors areavailable to meet your specific product needs.

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VISMAX® PlasticCasingsVISMAX® Plastic Casings are maximumperformance multilayer casings formolded and formed processed meatand poultry application. Manufacturedusing multilayer extrusion technology,VISMAX® Plastic Casings are designedto maximize moisture and oxygenbarrier for optimum cooking yieldand product shelf stability.

VISCOAT® Casings and FilmsVISCOAT® Casings and Films from VISKASE® are a unique combination of a multi-layer plastic with an inner paper layer treated specifically to impart natural colors or smoke to the finished products. They provide all the benefits of a barrier casing without limiting product quality or taste.

Characteristics• Purge Resistance: guards against excessive purge

during processing

• Diameter Control: ensures optimum productivity and reduces product giveaway

• Moisture Barrier: minimizes the transfer of moisture, maximizes product yield during cooking, and limits product weight loss during storage

• Oxygen Barrier: extends the shelf life of the product

FeaturesVISCOAT® is now available as a seamed casing or aflat film VISCOAT® F.

Size Range: VISCOAT® Casing: Flat widths 90 – 280 mm.

VISCOAT® F: Flat width available to accommodate all sizes of forming shoulders.

For additional sizes and flavors contact your Viskase Representative.

– VISCOAT® SMOKE MASTER® is ready to stuffVISCOAT® product, treated with natural liquid smokethat will transfer smoke flavor and color to the surfa-ce of the stuffed item. VISCOAT® SMOKE MASTER® products are available in low to strong smoke flavors as well as light to dark transfer colors.

– VISCOAT® COLOR MASTER™ is a pre-moisturized VISCOAT® product that imparts a caramel color to the surface of the stuffed item. Caramel colors range from golden to dark brown.

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Front & Back Side Process Printing EZ-SIGN™Maximum Numbers of Colors

PRODUCTS

FIBROUS Casing

® CasingPOLYJAX

VISFLEX® Casing

VISMAX® Casing

® CasingNOJAX

®LCC / ZEPHYR

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Please contact our Viskase Representative for additional printing options.

PRINTING COLOR CAPABILITIES

PrintingCapabilitiesAs our customer requirements have changed, Viskase has continued to invest in the latest printing technolo-gy to provide high quality 8-color continuous and process printing ca-pabilities.

We are uniquely experienced at offering high quality flexographic printing to distinguish your quality products at the point of sale.

To ensure our client’s needs are consistently being met, we have invested in the latest software, hardware and plate making equipment available. Our ability to go directly from concept to press allows us to produce high quality prints quickly and efficiently.

Our In-house Artwork Professionals work closely with our customers and Viskase Press Specialists to ensure your unique designs and logos go to press accurate, on time and looking their best!

United StatesWorldwide Corporate HeadquartersViskase Companies, Inc.Darien, IL U.S.A.

Since 1925

Viskase Companies, Inc.

8205 S. Cass Avenue, Suite 115 Darien, IL 60561Telephone (Int’l): 630.874.0700 T. (USA): 1.800.VISKASE (847-5273) Fax: 630.874.0176 www.viskase.com

For contact information visit us at www.viskase.com

Sales Locations

CanadaViskase Companies, Inc.Ontario, Canada

South AmericaViskase BrasilAtibaia, Sao Paulo, Brazil

Manufacturing Facilities

North AmericaOsceola, ArkansasLoudon, TennesseeMonterrey, Mexico

FranceEuropean HeadquartersViskase S.A.S.Paris, France

GermanyViskase GmbHDormagen, Germany

ItalyViskase SpACaronno Pertusella (VA), Italy

South AmericaAtibaia, Sao Paulo, Brazil

PolandViskase Polska Sp z o.o.Warsaw, Poland

PhilippinesAsia Pacific HeadquartersViskase Asia Pacific Corp.Clark (CFZ) Philippines

EuropeThaon-les-Vosges, FranceBeauvais, France

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VISKASE® Casing, VISKASE Design (Logo)®, CASING SOLUTIONS WORLDWIDE®, VISKASE® Products, SHIRMATIC® Casing, E-Z PEEL® Casing, E-Z PEEL® NOJAX® Casing, E-Z SMOKE® Casing, E-Z SMOKE® Fibrous Casing, NOJAX® Casing, POLYJAX® Casing, SENTINEL® Casing, SHIRMATIC® Casing, SHIRMATIC® System, SMOKE MASTER® Casing, VISCOAT® Casing, VISFLEX® Casing, VISMAX® Casing, ZEPHYR® Casing are registered trademarks of Viskase Companies, Inc.COLOR MASTER™ Casing, EZ-SIGN™ Casing, MP™ Casing, VISREX™ Casing are trademarks of Viskase Companies, Inc.