FLOWERS FOODS NAMED "BEST-MANAGED" FOOD COMPANY
AMONG THE 400 BEST BIG COMPANIES IN AMERICA
Forbes magazine puts Thomasville-based Flowers No. 1 among food, drink, and tobacco companies
THOMASVILLE, GA; January 22, 2007-- Flowers Foods (NYSE: FLO) has been named the "best-managed" food company among the 400 best big companies in America by Forbes magazine. Forbes editors selected Flowers Foods as the "best of the best" among the 18 companies in the food, drink, and tobacco category that made it on to Forbes' annual list of the 400 Best Big Companies.
To create this list, the magazine looked at more than 1,000 publicly traded companies with at least $1 billion in revenue and then chose 400 based on financial metrics, earnings forecasts, corporate governance ratings, and other public company information. From that list, Forbes editors picked one best-managed company from each of the 26 industries represented--the "best of the best." Forbes selected these companies not just for their financial performance, but also for leadership, innovation, and execution.
"To be selected the 'best of the best' among our peers by Forbes is indeed an honor," said George E. Deese, chairman of the board, CEO, and president. "It recognizes not just the operating strength of Flowers Foods and the efforts of our entire team, but also the effectiveness of our long-term strategies in building value for our shareholders."
The Best-Managed list and the 400 Best Big Companies list appear in the January 8, 2007 issue of Forbes. Additional information on Flowers Foods' ranking can be found at www.forbes.com.
Headquartered in Thomasville, Ga., Flowers Foods is one of the nation's leading producers and marketers of packaged bakery foods for retail and foodservice customers. Flowers operates 36 bakeries that produce a wide range of bakery products marketed in the Southeast, Southwest, and mid-Atlantic regions via an extensive direct-store-delivery network and nationwide through other delivery systems. Among the company's top brands are Nature's Own, Cobblestone Mill, BlueBird, and Mrs. Freshley's. For more information, visit www.flowersfoods.com.
Contact: Mary Krier, VP/Communications, 229.227.2333
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