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Children Deserve A Bigger Piece Of The Pie; Ben & Jerry's Campaign Urges People To Reconsider Spending Priorities

(Thursday, July 13, 2006) - Think America's children deserve a bigger slice of the pie when it comes to the federal budget? Want the U.S. to spend more on health care and education for kids? Ben & Jerry's is kicking off a national Federal Budget Priorities Campaign calling on Americans to reconsider spending priorities.


To help Americans decide for themselves how to more equitably slice this proverbial pie, Ben & Jerry's is kicking off a national Federal Budget Priorities Campaign. The focus of the program is to reconsider spending priorities by providing some "food for thought" about how our nation's discretionary budget is and should be shared.

The goal is to heighten awareness of the billions of dollars the Pentagon spends on nuclear weapons vs. a shortfall of spending on basic unmet needs of children. The campaign points out that we have options that won't diminish our nation's ability to fight global terrorism or a foreign foe.

"We can do much better for America's children," says Walt Freese, Ben & Jerry's CEO. "Many military experts agree that up to $13 billion can be cut from nuclear arms spending without compromising national security. These funds should be redirected toward programs such as universal child health care, immunization programs, and Head Start - at no additional taxpayer expense."

The campaign kicks off July 11, 2006 and reaches out to the public through retail, grassroots and interactive vehicles, including:

-- Multi-city tour - the Campaign goes on the road to Washington, D.C., New York, Boston, Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco and Portland, and offers helpings of the new American Pie ice cream to all

-- National Postcard Writing campaign - Visitors to Ben & Jerry's Scoop Shops are urged to send a postcard urging Congress to reconsider spending priorities and invest more in America's kids.

-- Interactive, educational web site, www.benjerry.com/americanpie

The campaign is celebrated with a new limited edition flavor, aptly named American Pie. This apple ice cream loaded with apples and pieces of pie crust is as rich as our nation and offers "food for thought" on a pie chart lid.

The American Pie Website features Ben & Jerry's thoughts on federal spending, interactive games, streaming video with startling facts about nuclear proliferation, and links to partner organizations working, as Ben & Jerry's says, to "do what's right for America's kids." Another feature is a user-friendly take-action link to the Children's Defense Fund for writing U.S. House Representatives and/or Senators, informing them that America's children deserve a bigger slice of the pie in order to thrive.

For more information on Ben & Jerry's Federal Budget Priorities Campaign and American Pie, or to watch Ben's intriguing demonstration using 10,000 BBs, each one representing a nuclear weapon, visit www.benjerry.com and www.benjerry.com/americanpie.

About Ben & Jerry's

Ben & Jerry's produces a wide variety of super-premium ice cream and ice cream novelties, using dairy products from a Vermont dairy cooperative and high-quality ingredients. The company is committed to using milk and cream from cows that have not been treated with the synthetic hormone rBGH, and states its position on rBGH on its labels. Ben and Jerry's products are distributed nationwide and in selected foreign countries in supermarkets, grocery stores, convenience stores, franchise Ben & Jerry's Scoop Shops, restaurants and other venues.

Ben & Jerry's, a wholly-owned autonomous subsidiary of Unilever, operates its business on a three-part mission statement emphasizing product quality, economic reward and a commitment to the community. Ben & Jerry's contributes a minimum of $1.1 million annually through corporate philanthropy that is primarily employee led. Additionally, the company makes significant product donations to community groups and nonprofits both in Vermont and across the nation. The purpose of Ben & Jerry's philanthropy is to support the founding values of the company: economic and social justice, environmental restoration and peace through understanding, and to support our Vermont communities. For the full scoop on all Ben & Jerry's fabulous flavors, visit www.benjerry.com.

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