The Dannon Company Announces the Winners of the National Search for Families Feeding America

Contact:
Anna Moses, The Dannon Company, 914/366-2870
Carly Cohen, Porter Novelli, 212/601-8328

 Evelyn Browne Named Grand Prize Winner for "It's Spooky to be Hungry" Program; $10,000 Will Be Donated to the Golden Harvest Food Bank in Augusta, GA

Tarrytown, NY -- October 22, 2002 - The Dannon Company today announced that Evelyn Browne of Evans, GA and her family are the Grand Prize Winners in the Dannon search for Families Feeding AmericaTM contest. The Brownes run an annual Halloween-themed food drive called "It's Spooky to Be Hungry." The Golden Harvest Food Bank will receive a donation of $10,000 from Dannon and the Brownes will receive $1,000 in free groceries.

According to the USDA's Household Food Security in the United States study, more than 33 million people in the United States - including nearly 13 million children - lived in households deemed "food insecure" (hungry or at risk of hunger) in 2000. America's Second Harvest, the nation's largest hunger-relief charity, provided emergency food assistance to 23 million people last year, including 9 million children.

In response to these findings, Dannon's search for Families Feeding America contest honors everyday volunteers who donate their time helping to fight hunger in America. Working with America's Second Harvest, Dannon solicited essay entries and hundreds of nominations were submitted from all over the country. The Dannon Company is committed to the fight against hunger and will be working with America's Second Harvest in the upcoming year on more programs dedicated to this effort.

"Dannon knows that there are volunteers all over this country working hard to end hunger who receive little public recognition for the service they are giving to their communities," said Thomas Kunz, President and CEO for The Dannon Company. "The response to the Families Feeding America search was overwhelming and we, along with America's Second Harvest, are moved by the winners' stories and their dedication."

The 500-word essays were judged on the basis of charitable value, ingenuity and motivational value of their hunger-relief work. Four runners-up will receive $1,000 in free groceries from their local grocery store and their hunger relief charity will receive a $1,000 donation from Dannon.

"It's Spooky to be Hungry" began eight years ago when Evelyn and her family moved to Augusta for her husband's job as an Army physician and she wanted to volunteer within her new community to help alleviate hunger. "Spooky" now boasts over 1,000 volunteers (500 of whom are children) each Halloween season. Members of 80 communities, as well as 20 businesses and schools, go out into their neighborhoods in the days leading up to Halloween to collect food for those in need. Last year, the group gathered 35,000 pounds of food to donate to the Golden Harvest Food Bank.

"I had no idea such a simple idea could grow and make a real difference in our community," says Evelyn Browne. "We're thrilled to be recognized by Dannon. We'll be able to make this Halloween one of the best."

"Spooky" is run by volunteers and has no annual budget. The organization seeks not only to feed the hungry, but also to build a stronger community. This year's activities will take place on October 26 and the annual weigh-in celebration will be held on November 1.

Runners-Up

Laura Kahn and her family oversee the Philabundance Community Garden in Philadelphia, where they, and other volunteers, grow 500 pounds of fresh produce in community gardens for Philadelphia's hungry. Philabundance, a community food bank, provides 35,000 meals per day and, because of the Kahn's hard work, those meals consist of fresh fruits and vegetables.

The Pattisons, including husband and wife, Palmer and Jolene, their son Brad, and Maxine Summers, Palmer's mother, are the main organizers of the Eagle Ministry Chuckwagon in Murray, Utah. Working out of a retrofitted trailer, the Pattisons are able to provide hundreds of meals each week to the people in their community.

A few years ago, Stephanie Nelson started "Cut Out Hunger," a coupon-clipping program that helps shoppers join the fight to end hunger. During a weekly grocery shopping trip, Stephanie Nelson discovered that, by using double and triple value coupons at her local supermarket, she could buy about $60 worth of groceries for a mere $10. She realized that instead of simply donating some money to help feed the hungry, why not bargain shop and make any possible donation money go that much further. She now works with local grocery stores to donate food to area food banks and helps others do the same through a coupon-alert web site.

Nichole and Nicholas Hayden, fourteen-year-old twins from Richfield, Minnesota realized that many children their age whose families are fed through the food bank were not getting a birthday party on their special day. With their mother's help, the twins raised money and donated bags to the local food bank with everything needed for a birthday party: cake mix, frosting, candles, party favors, decorations, cups, plates, napkins and more. The program is now being continued by schools in the St. Paul area.

Celebrating its 60th anniversary, The Dannon Company, Inc. is a leading national producer of yogurt products in the United States with corporate headquarters in Tarrytown, NY, and plants in Minster, OH; Fort Worth, TX; and West Jordan, UT. With a strong commitment to high-quality, wholesome, nutritious and innovative products, Dannon produces about six million cups of yogurt each day in nearly 100 flavors, styles and sizes. For more information about Dannon, visit our website at www.dannon.com.