FIRST SIGN OF HOLIDAY CHEER: TRUCKLOAD OF TURKEYS ARRIVES TO FEED HOUSTON’S HUNGRY TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18

Houston, November 13, 2003 - As Houstonians begin Thanksgiving grocery shopping, a number of prominent organizations are working together to ensure Houston’s hungry aren’t forgotten. The End Hunger Network, with the support of Randalls Food Markets, Riviana Foods and Gulf Winds International, will distribute food to local emergency food providers on Tuesday, November 18 at the Randalls Flagship Store at 9660 Westheimer.

What: Enough food to feed more than 18,000 hungry Houstonians - 8,400 pounds of turkey and 650 bags of vegetables donated by Randalls, a pallet of rice donated by Riviana Foods and 15,000 pounds of potatoes provided to the End Hunger Network through a program supported in part by a grant from Kraft Foods - will be distributed to EHN partner agencies.

When: Tuesday, November 18, 2003, 10:30 a.m.

Where: Randalls Flagship Store at Woodlake, 9660 Westheimer at Gessner, (713) 783-0733

Visual: Randalls President Steve Frisby joins End Hunger Network’s Chair-Elect C. Paige DiMaggio, staff and dozens of volunteers to help load turkeys, rice, and produce from Randalls and Gulf Wind International trucks into agency trucks and vans for distribution to Houston’s hungry.

Now in its 18th year, the End Hunger Network is a private, non-profit organization that feeds the hungry by providing perishable and nonperishable food to 86 partner agencies located throughout the Greater Houston Area. End Hunger Network operates two hunger-relief programs. Food Loop, the only food rescue program in Houston, picks up surplus prepared and perishable food donated by food-industry businesses and delivers it on the same day to emergency shelters, soup kitchens, and food pantries. This rapid distribution system ensures that wonderful wholesome food reaches dinner plates rather than dumpsters, so families don’t go hungry.

Red Barrel supports the critical need for food supplies by encouraging supermarket customers to fill EHN’s red barrels with purchased nonperishable foods. Operating in more than 250 grocery stores, Red Barrel gives consumers a convenient way to donate food 365 days a year.

In the past five years, EHN has collected and distributed more than 8.35 million pounds of food through these two programs - enough to provide 6.5 million meals to emergency food providers. The End Hunger Network is a certified affiliate of America’s Second Harvest, the largest hunger-relief organization in the United States.

# # # #