Pilgrim's Pride Corporation Supporting Hurricane Relief Efforts
Company Will Match Up to $1 Million in Employee Donations to American Red Cross
PITTSBURG, Texas, Sept. 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Pilgrim's Pride Corporation (NYSE: PPC), the country's second-largest chicken company, today announced it will match funds raised by its 40,000 employees up to $1 million to support the humanitarian efforts for victims of Hurricane Katrina through the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund.
"While we are thankful that our facilities were unaffected, our prayers go out to the many people who have been impacted by this devastating hurricane," commented O.B. Goolsby, president and chief executive officer of Pilgrim's Pride Corporation. "Our employees are known for giving generously to help those in need, and they are responding quickly to help."
The company's employees have already begun raising funds and collecting non-perishable food and other items to help feed and clothe residents of the affected Gulf Coast communities. In addition, Pilgrim's Pride employees in many locations are providing direct assistance to many people who have been displaced by Hurricane Katrina.
The company will continue its corporate match throughout the month of September and hopes to generate the entire $2 million for the American Red Cross.
About Pilgrim's Pride Corporation
Pilgrim's Pride Corporation is the second-largest chicken company in the United States and Mexico and the largest chicken producer in Puerto Rico. Pilgrim's Pride employs more than 40,000 people and has major operations in Texas, Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Mexico and Puerto Rico, with other facilities in Arizona, Florida, California, Iowa, Mississippi, Utah and Wisconsin.
Pilgrim's Pride products are sold to foodservice, retail and frozen entree customers. The Company's primary distribution is through retailers, foodservice distributors and restaurants throughout the United States and Puerto Rico and in the Northern and Central regions of Mexico. For more information, please visit http://www.pilgrimspride.com .
Forward-Looking Statements:
Statements contained in this press release that state the intentions, hopes, beliefs, anticipations, expectations, outlooks or predictions of the future of Pilgrim's Pride Corporation and its management, including the expectations regarding quarterly earnings, poultry prices and feed ingredient costs for the remainder of fiscal year 2005, are forward-looking statements. It is important to note that the actual results could differ materially from those projected in such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in such forward- looking statements include: matters affecting the poultry industry generally, including fluctuations in the commodity prices of feed ingredients, chicken and turkey; additional outbreaks of avian influenza or other diseases affecting the production performance and/or marketability of the company's poultry products; contamination of our products, which has recently and can in the future lead to product liability claims and product recalls; exposure to risks related to product liability, product recalls, property damage and injuries to persons, for which insurance coverage is expensive, limited and potentially inadequate; management of our cash resources, particularly in light of our leverage; restrictions imposed by and as a result of, our leverage; currency exchange rate fluctuations, trade barriers, exchange controls, expropriation and other risks associated with foreign operations; changes in laws or regulations affecting our operations or the application thereof as well as competitive factors and pricing pressures; risks associated with the acquisition of ConAgra Foods' chicken division including possible unknown liabilities assumed in connection with the acquisition and loss of customers of the acquired business; inability to recognize the anticipated cost savings and anticipated benefits in connection with our turkey division restructuring; and the impact of uncertainties of litigation as well as other risks described under "Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Pilgrim's Pride Corporation undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
SOURCE Pilgrim's Pride Corporation
Media Contact
Cameron Bruett
Communications
Phone: +1 970.506.7801 | Email: cameron.bruett@jbssa.com