Release Details

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., Aug. 10 /PRNewswire/ -- Universal Forest Products® (Nasdaq: UFPI) announced today that it has entered into an exclusive long-term purchasing agreement with Sunshine State Cypress, Inc. for its entire cypress lumber production capacity. The agreement will provide UFPI with approximately 10 million board feet, annually, of cypress lumber that will be remanufactured at Universal's Moultrie, Georgia facility and sold to its Do- It-Yourself (D-I-Y) customer base.

"This agreement will give Universal a guaranteed source for cypress fiber, allowing us to add to the depth of our existing product lines, and will pave the way for the development of new value-added products," said Mike Glenn, UFPI's president and chief operating officer. "Cypress lumber has numerous applications outside the home, including decking, fencing, exterior shingles and trim, as well as lawn and garden products. Due to its color, consistency and beauty, it also has unlimited indoor applications which include moldings, paneling, flooring, beams and cabinets. We are very excited about the new product potential made possible by this agreement." According to Sunshine State Cypress, Inc. founder and president, W.C. (Bill) Bell, "This purchase agreement will create a unique strategic partnership within the industry that will allow Sunshine State Cypress to focus on producing the highest quality cypress lumber, while enabling Universal to broaden its product mix to include value-added cypress products. Universal's diverse customer base will allow us to effectively utilize every product from our new state-of-the-art saw mill opening soon in Hosford, Florida."

Sunshine State Cypress has an exclusive 20-year agreement with St. Joe Timberlands to purchase all of the cypress fiber from 300,000 acres of northwest Florida where St. Joe has extensive land holdings. This fiber resource will be harvested in an environmentally friendly manner from St. Joe lands that are sustainably managed for perpetual forest production.

Universal Forest Products® markets, manufactures, and engineers products for D-I-Y retail home centers, structural lumber products for the manufactured housing industry, engineered wood components for the site-built construction market and specialty wood packaging for various industries. For information about Universal Forest Products® on the Internet, please contact the company's investor relations web site at www.ufpi.com , or call 888-Buy-UFPI.

Included in this report are certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Such forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs of the Company's management as well as on assumptions made by and information currently available to the Company at the time such statements were made. Actual results could differ materially from those included in such forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned that all forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainty. These risk factors and additional information are included in the company's reports on Form 10K and 10Q on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. SOURCE Universal Forest Products®, Inc.

CONTACT: Charles R. Felix, Sr. V.P. Development and Investor Relations, 616-364-6161, Michael R. Cole, Chief Financial Officer, 616-364-6161, both of Universal Forest Products(R), Inc.; Matthew Della Croce, Vice President, 212-453-2316, or Pat McCoy, Managing Supervisor, 212-453-2272, both of Fleishman Hillard/