ATLANTA, Jan. 19, 2005 - Do hunger and obesity go together?

To a surprising extent, say nutrition experts, hunger often leads to obesity. Families unable to afford nutritious food often end up developing unhealthy eating habits, setting the stage for obesity and a variety of other health problems. The UPS Foundation, which for 15 years has pursued a major initiative to alleviate hunger in America, today announced it was broadening that effort to address nutrition and obesity issues.

The UPS Foundation's new initiative, "The National Collaboration to Reduce Hunger and Improve Nutrition," has been launched with the award of $2 million in grants to eight different organizations.

The organizations are based across the country from California and Ohio to Illinois, Virginia and Washington, D.C., and already are involved in various aspects of the fights against hunger and obesity. The Society of Saint Andrew in Big Island, Va., for example, is working to expand distribution of otherwise wasted fresh produce from local farms to local food banks. The Children's Hunger Alliance in Columbus, Ohio, is expanding access to and improving the quality of school meals.

"Millions of Americans look hunger in the face every day. They feel the consequences of poor nutrition and in many cases suffer from the effects of obesity," said Evern Cooper Epps, president of The UPS Foundation. "The connection between inadequate financial resources and poor nutrition is clear and compelling. We want to be instrumental in the fight against hunger by providing those individuals at risk with access to nutritious foods as well as information and resources."

Government reports show 36.3 million Americans - 13.3 million of whom are children - went hungry last year. Not surprisingly, there was a double-digit increase in requests for emergency food assistance even as medical evidence continues to mount showing America's children are facing serious health threats because of widespread obesity and inactivity.

"Obesity and hunger are major public health concerns facing our nation today," said Edward Cooney, executive director of the bipartisan Congressional Hunger Center in Washington, D.C., and a former Agriculture Department nutrition program director. "The announcement that The UPS Foundation is launching a new funding initiative to fight hunger centered on improving nutrition and decreasing obesity is of critical importance to the nation's nutritionally vulnerable children and adults."

In addition to the $2 million in new grants, The UPS Foundation since 1989 has supported food banks and local feeding programs through its Prepared and Perishable Food Rescue Initiative. UPS has helped local organizations by providing more than $10 million to help recover and distribute more than 300 million pounds of food to feed hungry Americans. UPS has not only contributed financially to the initiative, but also has provided technical, logistical and managerial expertise.

Founded in 1951 and based in Atlanta, Ga., The UPS Foundation identifies specific areas where its support will clearly impact social issues. The Foundation's major initiatives currently include programs that support increased nationwide volunteerism, family and workplace literacy and hunger relief. In 2003, The UPS Foundation donated more than US$39.8 million to charitable organizations worldwide. Visit community.ups.com for more information about UPS's community involvement.

UPS is the world's largest package delivery company and a global leader in supply chain services, offering an extensive range of options for synchronizing the movement of goods, information and funds. Headquartered in Atlanta, Ga., UPS serves more than 200 countries and territories worldwide. UPS's stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange (UPS), and the company can be found on the Web at UPS.com.

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Editor's Note: A list of The UPS Foundation grants made to fight hunger and obesity is appended to this release.

The UPS Foundation National Collaboration to Reduce Hunger and Improve Nutrition provides resources to major national and regional organizations to address critical hunger, obesity and nutrition issues in communities across the country. The grantmaking program seeks to increase access to high-quality nutritious foods, increase nonprofit organizational capacity and increase collaboration among organizations fighting hunger and obesity. Since 1989, The UPS Foundation has invested more than $12 million in the fight against hunger in America.

The Society of Saint Andrew - Big Island, Va. - $250,000
To expand distribution of otherwise wasted fresh produce from local farms through gleaning to local food banks while increasing local volunteerism and organizational capacity.

Share Our Strength - Washington, D.C. - $250,000
To build the capacity and expand the reach of the Operation Frontline nutrition education program.

America's Second Harvest - Chicago, Ill. - $250,000
To develop a web-based allocation tool that will encourage local affiliates to maximize and share their local food resources and improve access to nutritional food products.

National Conference of State Legislatures - Washington, D.C. - $250,000
To educate state legislators on the challenges and opportunities to improve nutrition and fight obesity while connecting them with their federal counterparts and nonprofit community organizations.

Food Research and Action Center - Washington, D.C. - $250,000
To provide leadership and technical assistance to state and local anti-hunger organizations, schools and nutrition service providers to increase participation of families and schools in programs such as summer food, school breakfast and school wellness policies.

D.C. Central Kitchens, Inc. - Washington, D.C. - $250,000
To expand distribution of meals to the hungry, increase college campus volunteerism, increase nutrition education for the hungry and provide job training to low-income individuals through the national Campus Kitchens program.

Community Food Security Coalition - Venice, Calif. - $250,000
To provide targeted and strategic assistance to three regional community food security initiatives in the Southwest, Baltimore, Md. and New York.

Children's Hunger Alliance - Columbus, Ohio - $250,000
To expand access to school breakfasts, improve the quality of food offered to children during the school day and increase opportunities for youth to be involved in physical activity outside the regular school day in Ohio

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For more information, please visit UPS.com or the company’s Sustainability website, ups.com/sustainability. View and subscribe to UPS Horizons, our sustainability newsletter, by visiting ups.com/sustainabilitynewsletter.

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