FMI and GMA Give Excellence in Data Synchronization Awards.

Awards Presented at the First Annual Data Synchronization Summit

CHICAGO -- Food Marketing Institute (FMI) and Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) presented Excellence in Data Synchronization Awards at the first Data Synchronization Summit 2006 that was held in Las Vegas last week. With nearly 270 attendees, this was the first time that FMI and GMA in conjunction with 1SYNC([TM])sponsored an industry-wide data synchronization event.

"The objective for these awards was to recognize companies that have displayed leadership and dedication to data synchronization for betterment of the industry and their organizations", said Pat Walsh, Director, Industry Relations, FMI.

Awards were announced under three categories:

* Excellence Awards to suppliers who are synchronizing with 10 retailers or more

* Excellence Awards to retailers who are synchronizing with over 500 suppliers

* The Rapid Adoption Award to a trading partner who dramatically adopted data synchronization in 2006

"The awards were given to companies that have demonstrated leadership qualities in adopting and implementing data synchronization, supporting industry standards, and aggressively gearing teams globally", said Pamela Stegeman, Vice President, Supply Chain and Technology, GMA.

The Supplier and Retailer Excellence in Data Synchronization Award winners included: The 3M Company, Cadbury Schweppes Americas Beverages, Colgate-Palmolive, ConAgra Foods, Inc., The Campbell Soup Company, The Clorox Company, The Coca-Cola Company, Dean Foods, Georgia Pacific, The Hershey Company, HJ Heinz Company, Johnson & Johnson, Kimberly-Clark, Kraft Foods, Nestle, The Procter & Gamble Company, PepsiCo, Sara Lee, The J.M. Smucker Company, Unilever, Wegmans, SUPERVALU, Wal-Mart, and Lowe's.

Lowe's also won the Rapid Adoption Award for their commendable achievement during this past year. In the beginning of 2006, Lowe's was receiving supplier publications from only 37 vendors. That number is currently more than 600 suppliers and rapidly growing. Today, Lowe's has over 60,000 GTINs published.

Data Synchronization Summit 2006 was designed to meet the needs of both small and large businesses, as evidenced by its theme: delivering real business benefits. The sessions focused on highlighting the best practices in data synchronization, improving data accuracy, and lessons learned, among other topics. Some notable sessions included aThe New Generation Sales Call' that was presented by Wegmans Food Markets & The J.M. Smucker Company; aPrice Synchronization - It's Here, It's Real' presented by The Coca-Cola Company and Cadbury Schweppes Americas Beverages and a session on the data accuracy study aSynchronization -The Next Generation of Business Partnering' was presented by Accenture, The Procter & Gamble Company, and Wegmans Food Markets.

According to Bob Noe, Chief Executive Officer, 1SYNC, "Getting new customers to the Data Pool is not the main focus anymore. Today data synchronization is about integrating with other processes in an organization and increasing connections. The industry's participation at this event proves that the adoption and implementation of data synchronization is on the rise."

Data Synchronization Summit, sponsored by FMI, GMA and 1SYNC was held on November 2 and at the Green Valley Ranch Resort, Las Vegas. Presentations are available at www.1SYNC.org.

About The Food Marketing Institute

Food Marketing Institute (FMI) conducts programs in research, education, industry relations and public affairs on behalf of its 1,500 member companies - food retailers and wholesalers - in the United States and around the world. FMI's U.S. members operate approximately 26,000 retail food stores with a combined annual sales volume of $340 billion - three-quarters of all retail food store sales in the United States. FMI's retail membership is composed of large multi-store chains, regional firms and independent supermarkets. Its international membership includes 200 companies from 50 countries. For more information, visit www.fmi.org.

About The Grocery Manufacturers Association

The Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) represents the world's leading branded food, beverage and consumer products companies. Since 1908, GMA has been an advocate for its members on public policy issues and has championed initiatives to increase industrywide productivity and growth. GMA member companies employ more than 2.5 million workers in all 50 states and account for more than $680 billion in sales. The association is led by a board of member company chief executives. For more information, visit www.gmabrands.com.

About 1SYNC[TM]

1SYNC, a subsidiary of GS1 US, is a Global Data Synchronization Network (GDSN)-certified Data Pool that offers a range of data synchronization solution that eliminates costly data errors, increase supply chain efficiencies, and provide a foundation for the implementation of next-generation technologies, such as the Electronic Product Code[TM] (EPC) and Radio Frequency Identification (RFID). For more information, visit www.1SYNC.org.