Tyson Foods Honors Phoebe Russell as a "Hunger All-Star"

Online, March 17, 2010 (Newswire.com) - Tomorrow, Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE:TSN) will honor Phoebe Russell of San Francisco for her hunger-relief efforts by selecting her as the next Tyson Hunger All-Star. It is an honor that comes with a donation of more than 15 tons of Tyson protein products to the San Francisco Food Bank.

At the age of five, Phoebe started a fund-raising campaign to raise money for the San Francisco Food Bank. She set a goal to raise $1,000 in two months by collecting and redeeming cans. With the help of her parents and preschool teacher, Phoebe began writing letters to family and friends about her project. As word got around, donations started pouring in. In just two months, Phoebe raised $3,736.30 for the San Francisco Food Bank. That's enough to feed 17,800 hungry people.

"Protein is an essential portion of a healthy diet and the most-needed donated item at the food bank," said Paul Ash, executive director of the San Francisco Food Bank. "We cannot thank Tyson Foods enough for this very special gift. The food bank is honored to receive this donation in Phoebe Russell's name."

Phoebe was nominated as a Tyson Hunger All-Star through Tyson Foods' hunger relief online site, http://hungerrelief.tyson.com. Each month, winners are selected from nominations submitted through the Web site. The site has steadily become a place where visitors can read and learn the compelling stories of people's commitment in the fight against hunger.

"Phoebe's enthusiasm for helping neighbors who are hungry is inspiring," said Ed Nicholson, director of community relations for Tyson Foods. "If each local community had volunteers who gave a fraction of what Phoebe Russell has for our nation's hungry, I believe we could win in the fight against hunger in this country. We're proud to honor Phoebe as our next Hunger All-Star and pleased to offer this donation of much-needed protein for the hungry in the San Francisco community."

Since 2000, Tyson Foods has been a leader in the fight against hunger. The company is actively engaged in food-donation events and fund-raising activities year-round to benefit those in need.

The protein given by Tyson today brings the company's total in-kind donations since 2000 to more than 73 million pounds. This milestone equates to more than 292 million meals donated to food banks and agencies serving local communities around the country. Last year alone, Tyson donated nearly eight million pounds of protein to Feeding America, the nation's leading domestic hunger-relief charity. For more information on how to get involved in the fight against hunger, go to http://hungerrelief.tyson.com/.