Closure of tea operations

Camellia PLC
10 December 2004


                                  Camellia Plc

          Linton Park Plc - Closure of tea operations in South Africa

Linton Park Plc ('the company'), a subsidiary of Camellia Plc, has today made
the following announcement:

The Chairman's statement on the company's interim results for the six months'
ended 30th June 2004, released on 23rd September 2004, reported that the tea
operations of Sapekoe (Pty) Ltd, the group's 70 per cent owned South African
subsidiary, were no longer viable as a result of the strength of the rand, the
imposition of a comparatively high minimum wage and the abolition of duty
protection against tea imports. It was also reported that provision had been
made for an impairment charge of £2.3 million offset in part by an associated
goodwill write back of £1.6 million. Following extensive discussions with the
South African government concerning the future of the tea industry in South
Africa, Sapekoe (Pty) Ltd has today announced the closure of its tea operations
with immediate effect. The redundancy costs arising from the closure will be
approximately £1.5 million.

For further enquiries please contact Camellia Plc
Malcolm Perkins
01622 746655
10th December 2004



                      This information is provided by RNS
            The company news service from the London Stock Exchange