Atkins Nutritionals, Inc. announces appointment of new Board of Directors

02/02/06 Atkins Nutritionals, Inc. (ANI) has announced the appointment of a board of directors to govern the company as it implements a new business strategy focused on providing great-tasting portable foods with a unique nutrition advantage to healthy, active men and women.

Four proven industry leaders join CEO and President Mark S. Rodriguez on the Board of Directors:

Robert W. Carpenter is the president of ARAMARK Healthcare - Food, a division of ARAMARK Corporation, and is responsible for all U.S. retail and patient food services provided in more than 300 hospitals. Prior to this, he was the president of ARAMARK Facilities Services - Specialty Markets where he was responsible for North American Facilities Management services across the business and industry, sports and entertainment, food processing, corrections and aviation marketplaces. Before joining ARAMARK, he served as vice president of marketing for McNeil Consumer and Specialty Pharmaceuticals where he led a department responsible for 21 different product lines, including Tylenol, Motrin, Imodium and St. Joseph portfolio brands. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Middlebury and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Kevin S. Flannery is the president and CEO of Whelan Financial Corporation, where he advises a number of newly reorganized companies. At Whelan, he serves as the chairman of the Stockholders Committee of Tesoro Petroleum Corp.; advisor to the Equity Committee of Raytech Corp.; advisor to the Creditors of Aviation Sales Corp.; and advisor to the Creditors Committee of Geneva Steel Company. Prior to joining Whelan, he was the chairman and CEO of RoweCom, Inc. A long-time provider of financial services advisory work to many well-known banks and private equity firms, Flannery also serves on the board of Darling International, America's leading provider of rendering, recycling and recovery solutions to the nation's food industry; and he is a director for Dan River, Inc.; Seitel Inc.; Texas Petrochemical LP and Sheffield Steel Corp.

Tim Healy was most recently the chairman and CEO of Ubiquity Brands, Inc., an owner of a number of well-known snack food lines. He has held numerous positions with leading consumer staple companies over the past 30 years, including managing director and operating partner of J.W. Childs Associates L.P.; chairman, CEO and president of Select Beverages, Inc.; and executive vice president and COO of National Beverage Corporation. Healy has also worked for the NutraSweet Division of G.D. Searle & Co.; General Foods Corporation; Heinz, USA; Frito-Lay, Inc.; and Procter & Gamble Co. Healy earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Iowa State University and an MBA with distinction from the Johnson School of Management at Cornell University.

Hugh R. Rovit is a principal in interim management at Masson & Company LLC, a turnaround advisory and financial restructuring firm. He works with many well-known private equity firms and their portfolio companies in the areas of situation assessment, budget development and the implementation of operating controls. Clients include a wholesale baking operation, an electronic equipment manufacturer and a multi-location process manufacturer. Rovit was previously the COO and CFO of Best Manufacturing, Inc., a manufacturer and distributor of institutional service apparel and textiles. He also serves on the board of Oneida, Ltd., where he is the chairman of the Finance Committee and serves on the Audit and Nominating and Governance Committees. Rovit earned a Bachelor of Arts degree with distinction in government from Dartmouth College and an MBA from Harvard University.

ANI's new strategy is driven by a commitment to consumer and customer needs, recently improving on-time deliveries to its customers from 64 percent last year to an average of 97 percent over the last 180 days, making it a "best in class" supplier to key retailers. By streamlining its product offering from 340 to 60 nutrition bars and shakes, ANI has made significant improvements to the taste, appearance and overall quality of its Atkins Advantage(TM) products.

ANI has introduced the new Atkins Advantage Caramel Cookie Dough and Caramel Fudge Brownie bars and plans to introduce other new products as a part of its development program. These new products are currently being introduced in the United States and have been authorized by major retailers such as Wal-Mart, Target, Sam's Club, Walgreens, Albertsons, Kroger, Publix, Safeway, GNC and Vitamin Shoppe.