Kroger's Family of Stores Commits $3 Million for Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Raleigh, NC, September 21, 2013 --(PR.com)-- The Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR), the nation’s largest traditional grocery retailer with 14 stores throughout the Triangle and North Carolina, has announced that it has committed $3 million in donations in partnership with key suppliers for local breast cancer initiatives across the country to support National Breast Cancer Awareness month in October. This will mark the seventh year since Kroger launched the annual Giving Hope a Hand® initiative. By the end of 2013, Kroger will have donated more than $24 million to support breast cancer research, education and services since 2006.

The effort kicks off in stores on Sunday, Sept. 22 and features 21 Kroger associates who are breast cancer survivors on marketing materials and custom packages of national and Kroger corporate brand products. These women share their survivor stories on the packaging of select items sold exclusively in Kroger's family of stores. Kroger’s campaign features a storewide sales promotion of popular items specially marked in pink packaging to indicate the brands that are supporting the $3 million donation. This year, approximately 1,600 items, including Kroger’s own products and popular items from Kroger partners, including Campbell’s, Dannon, Energizer, Frito-Lay, General Mills, Jimmy Dean, Kimberly-Clark, Kraft, Nestlé , Pepperidge Farm, Pepsi, Post, Sargento, Snapple and SC Johnson, will be marked with special shelf tags to highlight participation in the campaign. Last year, Kroger received the 2012 Gold HALO award from the Cause Marketing Forum for funds raised through Giving Hope a Hand®.

All of the inspirational stories from Kroger associates can be found at http://www.sharingcourage.com/, which is an interactive website dedicated to raising breast cancer awareness. Kroger customers, associates and their friends are encouraged to show their support and encouragement through the company’s Sharing Courage online community on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/SharingCourage, where they can:

- Post words of encouragement for a loved one or the community at large on the Wall of Hope.
- Stamp a Facebook profile photo or cover photo with a Sharing Courage graphic.
- Send an e-card to a loved one.

Quotes:
“Giving Hope a Hand aims to inspire our customers and raise awareness by sharing stories from some of the more than 2.7 million women who are breast cancer survivors,” said Carl York, advertising and public relations manager for Kroger’s mid-Atlantic marketing region. “The Kroger family is honored that so many of our associates have offered their personal stories of hope and triumph as part of this campaign. We know this illness has affected many of our associates and customers, and we are proud to continue our commitment to finding a cure for this disease and help women and their families find the treatment and resources they need to fight and defeat it.”

About Kroger:
Kroger, the nation’s largest traditional grocery retailer, has 14 stores throughout the Triangle, including Apex (1), Cary (1), Garner (1), Fuquay-Varina (1), Raleigh (4) and Durham (6). Headquartered in Cincinnati, the company employs more than 338,000 associates who serve customers in 2,439 supermarkets and multi-department stores in 31 states under two dozen local banner names including Kroger, City Market, Dillons, Jay C, Food 4 Less, Fred Meyer, Fry's, King Soopers, QFC, Ralphs and Smith’s. The company also operates 788 convenience stores, 361 fine jewelry stores, 1,046 supermarket fuel centers and 40 food processing plants in the United States. Kroger focuses its charitable efforts on supporting hunger relief, health and wellness initiatives, and local organizations in the communities it serves. For more information, please visit http://www.kroger.com.