As Chairman of the H.J. Heinz Company Foundation, I am pleased to report that the Foundation’s helping mission continued to make a positive impact in the global community in 2009 thanks to the generosity of the H.J. Heinz Company and its 33,000 employees around the world.

With strong programs and enduring support, the Foundation continues to enhance the quality of life for millions of people, with a strategic focus on improving nutrition, fostering healthy communities and promoting diversity.

From providing new winter coats to children in Pittsburgh through Operation Warm, to distributing vitamin and mineral powders to millions of malnourished children in countries like China, India and Indonesia through the Heinz Micronutrient Campaign, the Foundation is carrying on a proud legacy of helping communities where Heinz operates and needy families and children wherever they may be in the world.

I am particularly excited about our signature program, the Heinz Micronutrient Campaign. At a cost of approximately $1.50 per child per year, this groundbreaking initiative is giving children a fighting chance to live healthier lives by combating the global health threat of iron-deficiency anemia. In 2010, the program is expanding to Africa for the first time and plans are underway to enter Mexico as well.

I am also pleased to report that Heinz factories and locations now actively participate in helping to administer grants through our Community Grants program.

Within the Foundation, we also strive to promote the spirit of volunteerism, exemplified by the tremendous growth of the Heinz Employees Lending Public Service (HELPS) program. With Heinz employees lending their time and talents, the community service projects of HELPS in fiscal years 2009 and 2010 included donating Christmas meal baskets and grocery certificates to a local food bank, Easter Baskets for at-risk children, and winter coats for at-risk children in Pittsburgh neighborhoods.

On behalf of Foundation Director Tammy Aupperle and Board Members Ted Bobby, Kristen Clark, Deb Crosby and Michael Mullen, I would like to thank Heinz and the Company’s employees, once again, for their for continuing support of our efforts to make a world of difference for people and their communities.

Sincerely,

Jack Runkel
Chairman