Corporate Social ResponsibilityDecember 2009 Your guiDe to responsible fooD

CSR

2

Transparency Advances Corporate Social Responsibility

CONTENTS2 TransparencyAdvances

CorporateSocialResponsibility

3 FoodforThought…andforFuel

4 EducatingToday’sYouth

4 SweetSustainability

6 PanelofExperts

7 APackagedDeal

7 ThisOne’sfortheKids

CORPORATESOCiAlRESPONSibiliTY

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a very special thanks to...

by:JoeSibilia,CeoCSRwiRe

Conagra Foods is one of North america’s leading food

makers,withbrandsin97percentofamerica’shouse-

holds.wemakethefoodyouloveandthebrandsyou

knowbest.Banquet, Chef Boyardee, Egg Beaters, Healthy Choice, Hebrew National, Hunt’s, Marie Callender’s, Orville Redenbacher’s, PAM, Peter Pan, Reddi-wipandmore.

TheHersheyCompanyisthelargestproducerofqual-

itychocolate inNorthamericaandaglobal leader in

chocolateandsugarconfectionery.Hersheyofferssuch

iconicbrandsasHershey’s,Reese’s,Hershey’sKisses,Kit

KatandHershey’sbliss.Hersheyisaleaderinthedark

andpremiumchocolatesegment,withHershey’sSpecial

DarkandHershey’sextraDark.

CSR is a form of corporate

transparencythathasevolved

from companies reacting

to activists’ complaints. it has been

called many things, from “business

for social responsibility” to ”green

business”to“triplebottomlinebusi-

ness,”butthere’sonethingitsnot—

SinglebottomlineCapitalism.

There is a profound sense in the

marketplace that it is no longer ac-

ceptabletoonlyfocusonprofits,or

thesinglebottomline.everymonth,

more and more members of the

business community are recogniz-

ing that behaving ethically in their

interactions with employees, stock-

holders, partners and the public, as

wellas intheirtreatmentoftheen-

vironment,isessentialtolong-term,

sustainablesuccess.

Food and beverage companies

have been among the leaders and

pioneersintheCSRmovement.This

makesintuitivesense,aspeoplehave

aninnateinterestinthequalityand

wholesomenessoftheproductsthey

consume. it’snatural for individuals

towanttobereassuredthattheor-

ganizationsthatnourishthemtoday

will be able to provide products of

equal caliber throughout their life-

times,andtheirchildren’slifetimes.

a strong CSR policy also attracts

talent. executives of all ages are in-

terestedinconnectingtheirpersonal

valueswiththoseoftheiremployers,

and often opt to join organizations

they respect. investors, too, have

realized the value of CSR. Certain

stock exchanges around the globe

require that companies provide in-

formation about their CSR activities

beforetheycanbelisted.inthewake

oftherecentfinancialcrisis,itseems

logicalthatinvestorsintheU.S.might

startclamoringforsimilarstandards.

Consumers, especially younger

ones who have not yet established

brand loyalties, have demonstrated

awillingnesstoswitchbrandsbased

onacompany’spoliciesandimpact

ontheenvironment.Thereisastrong

consumer demand for products

perceivedtobehealthierandsafer.

according to a report from “ethical

Food and beverage, Personal Care

andHouseholdProductsintheU.S.,”

approximately one-fourth of U.S.

adultshoppersfrequentlybuycerti-

fiedorganicfoodorbeverageprod-

ucts.andeveninthemidstofareces-

sion,one-thirdoftheseshoppersare

usuallywillingtopaymoreforthese

offerings.Theconsumerisdrivingthe

trendtobetterfoodandbeverages,

andcompaniesareresponding.

imagine this: you’re browsing

theorganicmilkinyourlocalsuper-

market’s cooler when it hits you—

everythingfromthefertilizerthatwas

used to feed the grass that fed the

cowthatprovidesyourkidswiththe

milkfortheircerealcamefromasolar-

poweredorganicfarm.it’shappening.

“Corporate Social Responsibility” (CSR) is the most popular U.S. term fortheemergingbestpracticeofcompaniesimprovingthequalityof lifeontheplanetbykeepingthegoodofthecommunityinmindwhenmakingdecisions.

A strong CSR policy also attracts talent. Executives of all ages are interested in connecting their personal values with those of their employers,

and often opt to join organizations they respect.

3

CSR

Food for Thought…and for Fuel:Today’s Corn Industry

Since most corn is produced

by family-runbusinesses, the

industry’s dedication to

sustainable agriculture stems not

onlyfromasenseofsocialresponsi-

bility,butalsofromadesiretomain-

tain the livelihoods of farmers and

theirfamilies.

“Ninety-fivepercentofcornispro-

ducedbyfamilyfarmerswholiveand

work on the land,” explains Darrin

ihnen,presidentoftheNationalCorn

Growers association (NCGa). “i my-

self am a fourth-generation farmer.

Twoofmychildrenareinterestedin

the business, so they would be the

fifthgeneration.weneedtobegood

stewards of the land because we

wanttopassitalong.”

over the last twenty years, the

industryhas reducedtheamountof

land,energyandwaterusedtopro-

duceasinglebushelofcorn.

“we are producing much more

corn with less of everything—land,

fertilizer, chemicals, fuels, etc.,” says

ihnen,particularlyimportantasfarm-

ersareharvestingmorecornthanever

before. NCGa predicts the U.S. will

produce17billionbushelsby2020.

The elevated demand for corn is

dueinparttothecounty’scommit-

ment to cleaner-burning auto fuel.

ethanolemitsabout50percentless

greenhouse gas than gasoline, ac-

cordingtoarecentstudybyresearch-

ers at the University of Nebraska-

lincoln,whoattributedthereduction

to the improved efficiency of the

ethanolproductionprocess.

“italsomakessensetouseourown

fuelratherthanpurchasingoilfrom

other countries,” adds ihnen, who

notesthattheethanolsegmenthas

been instrumental to the economic

developmentofruralareasbycreat-

ingmorejobs.

The corn industry is committed

to sustainable agriculture—for the

goodofitsfarmers,andforthegood

of farmers to come. ihnen puts it

simply: “i have a little baby grand-

daughter.whywould idoanything

tohurtherabilitytomakealivingoff

thelandlikeihavedone?”

The U.S. is the world’s largest producer of corn. while about 80 percent of thecropbecomes feed for livestock,hereandabroad,corn isalsoused in foodproducts,sweetener,starch,oilandfuel.

News in Brief

american farmers produce

about $100 billion worth of

cropseachyear,accordingtothe

U.S. environmental Protection

agency. whether your concern

lieswiththeeconomy, theenvi-

ronment or people, sustainable

agricultureaffectsyou.Foralistof

nearbystoresandrestaurantsthat

sell sustainable food, enter your

ZiPcodeateatwellGuide.org.

Sustainable Farming and Why you Care About It

The corn industry is

committed to sustainable agriculture…

CSR

4

The World Cocoa Foundation Encouraging Sustainable, Responsible Cocoa Growing

Sweet Sustainability: Improving the Lives of Cocoa Farmers

The world Cocoa Foundation

(wCF) is committed to pro-

moting economic and social

development and environmental

stewardship inall15cocoa-produc-

ing countries around the world, in-

cludingtheseregions.

The foundation, established in

2000, boasts nearly 70 member

companies from the americas,

europe, asia and africa. wCF ac-

tivelysupportsarangeoffarm-level

programs harnessing sustainable

agriculturepracticestoimprovethe

qualityoflifeforthemillionsofsmall

family farmers growing this unique

crop.TheCocoalivelihoodsProgram

isanexampleofagricultureprograms

managedbywCF.

This program was developed

through a collaborative partnership

between wCF, the bill & Melinda

Gates Foundation and 12 cocoa

companies.between2009and2014,

theprogramwillworkwithapproxi-

mately200,000cocoa-farminghouse-

holds in Cameroon, Côte d’ivoire,

Ghana, liberia and Nigeria to reach

the program’s goal of doubling the

incomeofone-thirdofafrica’scocoa

farmerswithsmallfamilyfarms.

“we know from experience that

cocoacanplayasignificant,positive

roleinincreasingthefamilyincomes

of these cocoa farmers in the de-

veloping world,” says bill Guyton,

president,worldCocoaFoundation.

“Throughfarmertrainingonsustain-

able production techniques and

quality issues, this program will

improve the lives of these farmers

andtheircommunities.”

TheCocoalivelihoodsProgramis

furthersupportedbymajorbranded

manufacturers: The Hershey

Company,KraftFoodsandMars

inc; cocoa processors: archer

Daniels Midland Company,

barry Callebaut, blommer

ChocolateCompanyand

Cargill; supply chain

managers and allied industries:

armajaro, ecom-agrocacao, Noble

Resources S.a., olam international

ltd.andStarbucksCoffeeCompany;

as well as the German Ministry for

economicCooperationandDevelop-

ment(bMZ).additionally,representa-

tivesfromeachnationalgovernment

arepartnersandadvisors.

approximately 70 percent of the world’s cocoacomes from west and Central africa. improvingthelivelihoodsofthecocoa-farmingfamiliesintheregionisessentialtothelong-termsustainabilityofthecocoasector.

Educating Today’s Youth: Here and Abroad

Providing our nation’s youth

with the skill sets and

knowledge they’ll need later

in life,regardlessofsocio-economic

backgrounds,shouldbetherespon-

sibility of citizens, politicians and

businesses alike; but additionally,

many companies are also taking

greatstridestoimproveeducational

facilitiesabroad.

Dole,theworld’slargestproducer

of fresh fruits and vegetables, sup-

ports the Philippines through its

partnership in an adopt-a-School

programwhichallowsbusinessesto

adoptschoolsinneed.TheStarbucks

Foundationfunds literacyprograms

intheU.S.,Canadaandothercommu-

nitieswhereStarbuckshasstores.The

companyalsocreatedtheStarbucks

China education Program, which

includesaninitiativetotrainteachers

inruralareasinChina.

Hereinthestates,PepsiCo,which

hasalonghistoryofcommitmentto

educational programs, donated $1

millionlastyeartotheUnitedNegro

CollegeFund(UNCF)tohelpprovide

scholarships tostudentsatcolleges

alloverthecountry.

The Hershey Company’s largest

shareholder is actually a school for

underprivileged children. Founded

by Milton Hershey, the company’s

creator, it is now in its 100th year

and has touched the lives of thou-

sands of children who otherwise

wouldnothavebeenabletoafford

privateeducation.

“Theschooliscompletelyfree,and

everychildadmittedcomesfromdire

poverty,fromtruesocialandfinancial

need,” says Jody Cook, Hershey’s

directorofproductpublicity.

Milton and his wife established a

trusttofundtheschoolandlefttheir

entirefortunetothecause.“For100

years, without consumers knowing

it, every time they have enjoyed a

Hersheychocolate,they’vebeensup-

portingthisschool,”explainsCook.

educational initiatives at home

andabroadareameansforcompa-

nies to help better the lives of un-

derprivilegedchildrenand improve

the communities they serve… so

goaheadandindulgeinasodapop

or chocolate bar—it could be for a

goodcause.

a child’s home life and income level affect his orher chance of receiving the education necessaryforsuccessinthe“realworld.”

Thank you for opening

doors for children in need.

Once upon a time...a boy from a childhood of hardships and struggle persevered and became a man with a selfless heart, driven by his values and

principles. He started the successful Hershey Chocolate Company, fell in love with a wonderful woman and married. Together, he and his wife built a town for his workers and their children… but sadly, they could not have children of their own. To fill the void

in their hearts, they established a home and school for children in need… and it grew… and the children flourished.

The man cared so passionately for the school that he devoted virtually his entire fortune to its future… and the future of the children it served.

That man is Milton Hershey and the school is Milton Hershey School.

Every person who loves chocolate makes a difference in the lives of the children, too. You see, every time you enjoy Hershey’s®, you help Milton Hershey School give generations of children a safe, nurturing environment and an excellent education.

Thank you for giving opportunity to children in need.

CSR

6

Q: why is it important for companies to use

sustainablepackaging?

A: asdefinedbytheSustainablePackaging

Coalition,sustainablepackaging isaclosed-

loop system of packaging that is “sourced

responsibly,designedtobesafeandeffective

throughoutitslifecycle,meetsmarketcriteria

for performance and cost, is made entirely

using renewable energy and, once used, is

recycled efficiently to provide a valuable

resourceforsubsequentgenerations.”

asagoodcorporatecitizenandasteward

of our natural and community resources,

Snyder’s feels that conducting business in a

fashion that can create long-term economic

value by meeting consumers’ needs while

taking steps to minimize the impact of our

activitiesontheenvironmentjustmakessense.

butsustainabilitycannotbeastand-alone

objective; rather it has to be an integral

elementoftheoverallcorporateculture.itis

notapoint-in-timemeasurebutanon-going

processthatofteninvolvesmanyincremental

stepsalongthewayratherthansinglegiant

leaps.ForSnyder’sofHanover,pursuingsus-

tainabilityispartofour cultureandheritage

and,inmanyways,alwayshasbeen.

Q: whatcancornbeusedfor,besidesfood,

ofcourse?

A: ourtraditionalmarketshavebeenexport

and livestock,butournewdemandandour

newgrowthis inethanol.anythingthatcan

bemadeoutofpetroleumcanbemadeout

ofethanol.wecanmakeplastic,clothingand

otherfuelsbesidesethanol.wearealsoalways

looking for other areas to use our corn. The

reasonwecandothisisbecausewearepro-

ducingabiggerandbiggercropeveryyear,so

weareabletoallotmoreforethanolandother

industrialuses.ourstrategicplanistoabout

doubleourcorncropbytheyear2030.

we talk about alternative energy today,

buttheonlyalternativetogasolineisethanol.

The opponents have used the food-versus-

fuelargument—thatweareraisingtheprice

offoodbecauseweareusingcornforethanol.

butwhatreallyraisedfoodpricesisthecostof

energy,whichaffectsalltheotherexpenses—

labor,packaging,transportation…thewhole

process.Thenewgenerationofethanolplants,

whichmostoftheethanolindustryuses,emit

lessgreenhousegasesthangasoline.

Q. why isCorporateSocialResponsibilityso

importanttoTheHersheyCompany?

A. CSRhasreallybeenapartofourDNaever

sinceMiltonHersheyfoundedthecompany.

our founder wasn’t just an extraordinary

entrepreneur, but also an extraordinary

philanthropist.

whenhestartedinHershey,Pa,thedairy

land was obviously very important to him.

That’s why he put his factory here. when

you’re making milk chocolate, you need

dairyland.Hebasicallybuiltthistownforthe

business. He built homes for his employees,

evenafirehouse.DuringtheGreatDepression,

heemployedpeoplefromallaroundthearea

tobuildahotel.Therearewonderfulstories

aboutpeopleapproachinghimtosay,“ican

sell you a machine that will do the work of

manymen,”buthe’dtellthemhewantedto

employpeople.

oneofhisbiggestlegacies,andthelegacy

that will go into perpetuity along with his

iconicchocolate,isTheMiltonHersheySchool,

whichiscelebratingits100thanniversary.it’s

completely free, and every kid who attends

comesfromdirepoverty.

Hershey is committed to CSR initiatives,

andkids inneedtopthat listbecause itwas

ourfounder’svisionandmission.

Q: what efforts has your company made to

reduceitsimpactontheenvironment?

A: Conagra Foods has had a Sustainable

Development award program and confer-

ence in place since 1992. This program was

initiatedtorecognizeandsharebestpractices

internally,andhasgottentremendouslymore

important over the years, considering the

heightenedfocusonCSRintheworldaround

us.werecognizeeffortsinwaterconservation,

energyefficiency,thereductionofsolidwaste

and recycling, packaging innovation and

lastly,howthosethingsaremarketed.

we were the first food company in North

america to use post-consumer recycled

plasticforourfrozenmealtrays.Thisnotonly

wonourSustainablePackaging,Product,and

Process innovation award, it also received

awardsfromseveralleadingexternalsources

inthepackagingindustry.

on the energy side, the project that won

was in a cannery in Milton, Pa. They imple-

mented a ceramic coating on their cooker

shells,savingenergyandmoneyandmaking

forasaferworkingenvironment,reallynailing

the“triplebottomline.”

a lot of these sustainability efforts were

started way before my position existed.

They’vealwaysbeenpartofourculture,which

is thanks to our supportive leadership…it’s

justnowwearestartingtotalkaboutthem.

Panel of Experts

MiKebRooKHaRTDirectorofMarketingSnyder’sofHanover

DaRRiNiHNeNPresidentNationalCornGrowersassociation

JoDyCooKDirectorProductPublicityTheHersheyCompany

GailTavillvicePresidentSustainableDevelopmentConagraFoods

7

CSR

Sharing theResponsibility.

©20

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Our new Pretzel Variety Sacks are the fi rst 100% COMPOSTABLE outer sack package in the salted snack aisle made from 100% RENEWABLE corn starch based plastic.

Great Taste, Better for You, Good for the Environment. Snyder’s of Hanover.

©20

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Our new Pretzel Variety Sacks COMPOSTABLE

outer sack package in the salted

corn starch based plastic.

Share the Best.

A Packaged Deal: Our Role in Sustainable Packaging

Sustainable packaging is an inte-

gralcomponentofbusinesses’earth-

friendlyundertakings.

“Corporate responsibility means

conductingourbusinessinafashion

that creates long-term economic

value while taking responsibility

for the impact of our activities…it

includesourcommitmenttosustain-

ability,whereourgoalistomaximize

theutilizationofproductsandprac-

ticeswhichhaveareducednegative

effectontheenvironment,”explains

Mikebrookhart,Snyder’sofHanover’s

directorofmarketing.

byitsbroadestdefinition,sustain-

able packaging “can be put back

into another useful life once it has

reachedtheendofitsfirstintended

use,” says Kevin Cronin, Ceo, Nicos

PolymersGroup,whichspecializesin

post-industrialplasticrecycling.The

term often also refers to packaging

thatwasmanufacturedusingenergy-

efficientprocesses.

“we hate to see anything go

to waste, down to the last grain

of salt,” explains brookhart; but

consumers also have a role to play.

Start by considering how much

packagingaproductuses;ifitseems

excessive, opt for a competitor’s.

lookforrecyclinglogos,suchasthe

threegreenarrowsarrangedtriangu-

larly; but remember, even materials

lackingthesymbolmayberecyclable.

“when we talk about packaging

itself, it is inherently sustainable in

that it can be reused,” says Cronin.

“The challenge is for companies to

look at their packaging and deter-

minewhetherornottherewouldbe

aworkablewaytogetthoseproducts

backfromtheirconsumersandhave

themrecycled.”

if you expect businesses to do

theirpart,youhavetodoyours.all

ofacompany’seffortsarefornaught

ifyouthrowitsrecyclablewrapperin

thetrash.

in a recent study of large retail and manufacturing companies released byTompkins’ Supply Chain Consortium, 65 percent of companies polled hada sustainable packaging policy in place, and 28 percent were working todevelopone—astheyshouldbe!

This One’s for the Kids: CSR and America’s Children

a few years ago, Hidden valley

funded research showing kids ate

more vegetables when they were

garnishedwithamoderateamount

ofranchdressing.aroundthesame

time,thegovernmentaskedschools

to improve the nutritional value of

theirlunchofferingsbutprovidedno

additionalfundingtodoso.

“armed with that knowledge, we

created a grant program to offer

financialsupporttohelpelementary

schools provide kids more access

to fresh fruits and vegetables” says

Priscilla Tuan, marketing manager,

Hiddenvalley.

Cookies for Kids’ Cancer, which

raises funds for pediatric cancer

research through local bake sales,

wasstartedbyamomwhosesonwas

diagnosed with the disease. “Glad

consumers love to share food they

make with others because it’s their

way of sharing their love. when

we learned about Cookies for Kids’

Cancer, we had to help,” explains

betsy Cantlin, brand manager

at Glad, which is matching funds

raisedupto$100,000thisNovember

andDecember.

Feedingamerica’sKidsCaféspro-

videchildreninneedwithsnacksand

mealsthroughcommunitylocations.

in2007,Uncleben’spartneredwith

theorganizationtoestablishUncle

ben’s-sponsored Kids Cafes. “in

addition to our $1 million dona-

tion, we’re providing more than

$2 million in associate and mar-

keting support and more than 22

million servings of food to date,”

saysvincentHowell,president,Mars

Food North america. This holiday

season,whynottakeacuefromcor-

porateamericaanddosomethingto

supportchildreninneed?

“Thekidsaretheheartof the family,”pointsoutaileenZerrudo,directorofcommunications for CSR at The Clorox Company. Small wonder, then, thattheCSRagendas ofsomanyfamily-focusedbrandsemphasizethewelfareofamerica’schildren.

© ConAgra Foods, Inc. All rights reserved.

SO, DID YOU FIND EVERYTHING YOU WERE LOOKING FOR?

At ConAgra Foods, we know that it takes a lot to make it onto your shopping list — that every item you place in your grocery cart refl ects

your trust and confi dence in that brand. And we want to earn that confi dence.That’s why we pay so much attention to quality, in our

ingredients and in our preparation. It’s why we use environmentally friendly packaging and sustainable practices. And why we give back to the communities where our employees live and work. For us, it’s not

enough to make good food. We want to make food you can feel good about.

conagrafoods.com

TOTALLY

ConAgra092245 USATodayResponsibilityAd_9.indd 1 11/25/09 11:31:44 AM