Compass Group, Contessa Announce Sustainable Farmed-Shrimp Purchasing Standards

Shrimp Farms Following the Process Would Be Rated 'Good Alternative' Under Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch Program

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina, February 11 - Compass Group USA, Foodbuy LLC and Contessa Premium Foods today announce
the first successful implementation by a major food service company of
sustainable purchasing standards for imported farm-raised shrimp. The
standards - including independent, third-party audits - have been endorsed by
the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program.

Foodbuy is the procurement company for Compass Group.

Historically, the Monterey Bay Aquarium's respected Seafood Watch program
deemed all imported farm-raised shrimp unsustainable and placed them on the
"Avoid" list. Contessa Premium Foods is providing Compass Group the first and
only imported farm-raised shrimp recognized as sustainable by Seafood Watch.
These sustainable shrimp standards are unique within the food service
industry in that they advocate real and achievable environmental benchmarks,
and establish a process to document that those benchmarks are being achieved.

The purchasing standards were developed by Compass Group and Contessa, in
collaboration with the Monterey Bay Aquarium. By applying these standards to
specific shrimp farms, and by including a third-party process to verify that
the standards are being applied in the field, Contessa has met Monterey Bay
Aquarium's Seafood Watch criteria for a "Good Alternative" ranking.

"Monterey Bay Aquarium has been a highly valued partner with Compass in
developing our entire sustainable seafood program," said Marc Zammit, vice
president of sustainability initiatives for Compass. "They have worked
closely with us and Contessa over several years in an intensive program that
included in-country testing, as well as independent confirmation."

"The goal of Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch program has been to
harness the power of the marketplace to create real change that translates
into healthy oceans," said Edward Cassano, senior director of conservation
outreach for the Monterey Bay Aquarium. "Compass Group's strong commitment to
the Seafood Watch program, and Contessa's willingness to work at the farm
level to provide a fully traceable supply of sustainably farmed shrimp in
line with Seafood Watch criteria, demonstrates that significant,
conservation-oriented shrimp aquaculture practices are possible."

"Compass Group and other major seafood buyers are demanding sustainable
seafood that meets the sustainability standards of the Monterey Bay Aquarium
program," Cassano added. "Producers and suppliers who take the lead - as
Contessa has done - will be rewarded for their efforts by the marketplace."

Compass' sustainable shrimp purchasing standards advocate an effective
procurement policy that supports ecologically responsible aquaculture
practices. Core practices of sustainable shrimp aquaculture include
maintaining mangrove ecosystems, minimizing other ecosystem impacts,
eliminating antibiotic use, reducing excessive reliance on feed from wild
sources and promoting overall compliance with local, national and
international laws.

The standards also require product traceability back to the source, to
ensure that 100 percent of the shrimp sold to Compass comes from farms that
meet its sustainable purchasing standards. The standards recognize the
sustainability achievements that Contessa has already put in place while
providing a roadmap for ongoing improvements and benchmarks for such
improvement.

Under these standards, Contessa has been recognized as the exclusive
supplier of sustainable shrimp for Compass Group and Foodbuy.

"We are all confident that ongoing monitoring will ensure that these
significant standards achieve measurable ecological gains," said Rick Stone,
vice president of sustainability, Foodbuy.

"We are proud of our pioneering group effort and believe it will help
protect ecosystems while responsibly feeding our growing population," said
John Z. Blazevich, president and CEO of Contessa Premium Foods.

About Compass Group: Based in Charlotte NC, Compass Group North America
is the leading foodservice and support services company with US$9.2 billion
in revenues in 2009. With 386,000 associates worldwide, its parent company,
UK-based Compass Group PLC www.compass-group.com/) had revenues of
pound Sterling 13.4 billion in the year to September 30, 2009.
www.cgnad.com

About Foodbuy LLC: Foodbuy LLC is the largest Group Purchasing Company
(GPO) for high volume multi-unit food operators in North America. Foodbuy
purchases thousands of food and non-food items from a select number of
quality suppliers and works with primary and secondary suppliers for most
categories. Their procurement office is located in Charlotte, North Carolina,
and is responsible for negotiating significant savings by focusing on the
purchasing needs of multi-unit operators on a category by category basis.

About Contessa Premium Foods, Inc.: Contessa Premium Foods is an
environmentally and nutritionally responsible food company producing high
quality frozen seafood, prepared meals and exotic vegetables for retail,
club, foodservice, military and private label channels. Contessa is
recognized globally for exceeding industry standards and celebrated for its
product innovation, premium quality and environmental contribution. In 2007,
Contessa built the world's first green LEED-certified frozen-food
manufacturing plant; reducing energy use and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions
by 65% daily; and 100% carbon neutral. www.contessa.com

About Monterey Bay Aquarium: The mission of the nonprofit Monterey Bay
Aquarium is to inspire conservation of the oceans. The Aquarium's Seafood
Watch program empowers seafood consumers and businesses to make choices for
healthy oceans. In doing so, the program works to transform seafood markets
in ways that create incentives for sustainable fishing and aquaculture
practices. www.montereybayaquarium.org

Sarah Hada of Compass Group USA, +1-704-328-1365, sarah.hada at compass-usa.com; or Ken Peterson of Monterey Bay Aquarium, +1-831-648-4922, kpeterson at mbayaq.org; or Juliet A. Boghossian of Contessa Premium Foods, +1-310-832-8000, x2142, jboghossian at contessa.com