Beneful® Elevates Pet Food to New Heights With Introduction of First-Ever Prepared Meals™ for Dogs

Family-Style Food Is Made With Real, Wholesome Ingredients and Showcased In Ready-to-Serve, Clear Pet Food Containers

St. Louis, MO, March 22, 2006—Succulent real meat and poultry, wild rice, barley, pasta, spinach, green beans, and carrots. Sounds like the perfect ingredients for a delicious, nutritious family-style meal... fit for a dog.

Beneful, one of the most successful premium dog foods on the market, is reinventing dog food as we know it with today's launch of Beneful Prepared Meals. Delivering the ideal balance of taste and nutrition, this innovative family-style food for dogs is made with real beef, chicken, turkey, pork and lamb with wholesome grains such as wild rice and barley and tender vegetables. The difference is visible, as Beneful Prepared Meals showcase the eight mouth-watering varieties and real food ingredients in clear, ready-to-serve, re-sealable plastic containers—a new packaging innovation in pet food. The new product is being launched regionally in 50 percent of the U.S.

"One of the biggest trends we are seeing among pet owners is the desire to feed their dogs the way they feed themselves—choosing food that is made with real, high quality ingredients that offer the perfect balance of taste and nutrition," said Steve Crimmins, vice president of dog food marketing for Nestlé Purina PetCare Company, which manufactures Beneful. "With Beneful Prepared Meals, we've added epicurean polish to pet food to meet the needs of today's devoted pet owners who want food for their dogs, not dog food."

From test kitchens to national store shelves, hands-on consumer involvement brought Beneful Prepared Meals to life. Highly-involved dog owners were asked to create their ideal dog food from virtually a "farmer's market" of real, wholesome ingredients. Beneful nutritionists then adapted the recipes to ensure they provide 100 percent complete and balanced nutrition for adult dogs and puppies. The result is an exciting new family-style food for dogs that has such taste- and eye-appeal that Beneful Prepared Meals warranted innovative packaging that clearly shows the difference on the store shelf.

"With the humanization of pets trend, dog owners have become more interested in the food they feed their dogs, including the ingredients on the label and the way the food is packaged," said Crimmins. "We are the first pet food manufacturer to put a clear container on the shelf that enables pet owners to actually see the quality of the product. With this innovative package, we obviously are showing a tremendous amount of confidence in Beneful Prepared Meals that will further solidify the trust pet owners have in our products."

The family-style, ready-to-serve Beneful Prepared Meals offers a smorgasbord of enticing flavors including:

• Beef Stew with peas, carrots, rice and barley
• Simmered Chicken Medley with green beans, carrots and wild rice
• Simmered Beef Entree with carrots, barley, wild rice and spinach
• Beef & Turkey Medley with green beans, carrots and wild rice
• Roasted Chicken Recipe with pasta, carrots and spinach
• Savory Rice & Lamb Stew with peas and carrots
• Roasted Turkey Medley with corn, wild rice, peas and barley
• Roasted Pork Entree with green beans, barley, carrots and wild rice

The Beneful Prepared Meals line is being launched regionally in 50 percent of the U.S. in March 2006, with distribution in grocery, pet specialty, mass merchandise and club store channels. The product is available in a 10-ounce, single-serve container for the suggested retail price of $1.59.

Launched in 2001, Beneful continues to experience double-digit growth and is one of the most successful premium dry dog foods on the market. With the introduction of Beneful Prepared Meals, the successful pet food brand is using its deep consumer insights and nutrition expertise to reinvent the wet dog food category. Visit www.beneful.com to learn more about Beneful Prepared Meals and the entire portfolio of Beneful products.

The North American headquarters for the Nestlé Purina PetCare Company is located at Checkerboard Square in St. Louis, Missouri, where Ralston Purina Company was founded more than a century ago. Nestlé Purina PetCare promotes responsible pet care, humane education, community involvement and the positive bond between people and their pets. One of the leading global players in the pet food industry, Nestlé Purina PetCare is part of the Swiss-based Nestlé S.A.—the world's largest food company.

Beneful Prepared Meals 2006 Market List