FDA Historian to Highlight Heinz's Support for the Formation of the Food and Drug Administration 100 Years Ago.

PITTSBURGH -- Americans today take a safe food supply almost for granted. Contamination like the recent E. Coli-tainted fresh spinach is news precisely because it is so rare.

But at the turn of the 20th Century, the unregulated U.S. food industry was truly like Forrest Gump's box of chocolates. Consumers never really knew what they were going to get.

To commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, which created the United States Food and Drug Administration, FDA historian Suzanne White Junod, Ph.D., will deliver a presentation at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, October 21, titled "Heinz and the Food and Drug Administration: A Century of Regulatory History" at the Senator John Heinz Pittsburgh Regional History Center on Smallman Street in the Strip District.

White Junod will discuss the politicking and controversy that surrounded the legislation, as well as the critical support provided by H.J. Heinz.

Henry Heinz recognized before most of his peers that pure food is not only good for you, but is also good business. He stood nearly alone among the manufacturers of his day in supporting the pure food crusader, Dr. Harvey Wiley, chief of the Bureau of Chemistry in the Department of Agriculture.

Heinz sent his son, Howard, a Yale-trained chemist, along with Dr. Wiley to lobby President Theodore Roosevelt for its passage. Howard Heinz took over the company upon his father's death in 1919.

Henry Heinz knew the new law would help build consumer confidence in the nascent food processing industry. Because the foods he produced were already pure, he also knew it would raise costs for his competitors, many of whom were adulterating their products with cheap fillers like turnip and wood fiber.

Dr. Wiley expressed his appreciation to Howard Heinz in 1924, citing his father's unwavering support. He wrote, "I appreciate the loyalty with which your father and all the staff stood by me in the darkest hours of my fight for pure food. I feel that I should have lost the fight if I had not had that assistance."

White Junod will also discuss the history of the enforcement of the legislation by the FDA in addition to the regulatory challenges presented by today's food industry, including the globalization of the food supply and the emergence of new production and packaging technologies, as well as new functional food ingredients.

"We are proud of our heritage as a pure food Company and as a champion for food safety and quality," said Heinz Chairman, President and CEO William R. Johnson. "H.J. Heinz bottled his first product, horseradish grown in his mother's Sharpsburg garden, in clear glass to emphasize its purity and quality. Our 33,000 employees carry on this tradition today around the globe. The Heinz keystone label is synonymous with quality and we recognize that nothing, other than our people, is more important to our company than the reputation of our brands established over the years. This is why we follow exacting quality control standards at all of our global facilities and demand the same of our suppliers."

While at the History Center, visitors will be able to view an extensive collection of vintage Heinz bottles, advertising and other company memorabilia as part of the Heinz 57 exhibit on the museum's fourth floor. Retired Heinz sales executive Ed Lehew, who collected many of the items in the display, will be on hand to discuss Heinz's unique history.

ABOUT HEINZ: H. J. Heinz Company, offering "Good Food Every Day" is one of the world's leading marketers and producers of branded foods in ketchup, condiments, sauces, meals, soups, snacks and infant foods. Heinz satisfies hungry consumers in every outlet, from supermarkets, to restaurants to convenience stores and kiosks. Heinz is a global family of leading brands, including Heinz[R] Ketchup, Sauces, Soups, Beans, Pasta and Infant Foods (representing nearly one-third of total sales or close to $3 billion), Ore-Ida[R] frozen potato products, Weight Watchers[R](a), Boston Market[R](a), T.G.I. Friday's[R](a), Smart Ones[R] meals and Plasmon[R] baby food. Heinz's 50 companies have number-one or number-two brands in 200 countries, showcased by Heinz[R] Ketchup, the world's favorite ketchup. Information on Heinz is available at www.heinz.com/news.

(a) Weight Watchers on foods and beverages is the registered trademark of WW Foods, LLC and is used under license; Boston Market is a registered trademark of McDonald's Corporation and is used under license; T.G.I. Friday's is a trademark of T.G.I. Friday's of Minnesota, Inc. and is used under license.