In 2000 we completed the conversion of our domestic pint packaging to our Eco-Pint which is constructed from unbleached paperboard. We initiated this project three years ago following an environmental analysis of our packaging. We concluded at the time that the best environmental choice was to stay with paper and improve upon the paper we used. The unbleached paperboard in the Eco-Pint does not require bleaching. The bleaching process for paper results in the production of dioxin, which the EPA has determined are toxic. Our Eco-Pint also has a nontoxic clay coating.

In 2000 quite a bit of media attention given to a press release from Junk Science, a Washington-based group that is adverse to most environmental regulation. Junk Science targeted our vanilla ice cream for dioxin testing. Dioxin is an atmospheric problem that makes its way into the food supply, including dairy products, as cows graze. In making the transition to our Eco-Pint, we produced a pamphlet and posted information on our web site that told our customers why the new pint is brown inside � that it was made from unbleached paperboard. Junk Science criticized us for not talking about the presence of dioxins in our products at the same time. The criticism was picked up by John Stossel for his “Give Me A Break” segment of ABC’s 20/20 program. In that interview and in our response to Junk Science, we noted that there was nothing we could do at the manufacturing level about the presence of dioxins in the food supply. The only action we could take to impact this global problem was the one we took­shifting our domestic packaging to unbleached paperboard.

In 2000 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a report that concluded some forms of dioxin are human carcinogens. The report noted however, that the level of dioxins in the environment was declining and that any risk for humans was over a lifetime of exposure. This report is available at the EPA web site www.epa.gov.

We continued to maintain our practice of purchasing milk and cream only from farms who pledged not to use rBGH, recombinant or genetically engineered growth hormone which is injected into cows to increase their milk production. Since our successful legal action in the State of Illinois in 1997 with regard to labeling, we have made the following statement on our pint containers:

"We oppose recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone. The family farmers who supply our milk and cream pledge not to treat their cows with rBGH. The FDA has said no significant difference has been shown and no test can now distinguish between milk from rBGH treated and untreated cows.”

In those instances where we cannot certify that a dairy-based ingredient is rBGH-free, we add to the above statement the following sentence:

"Not all the suppliers of our other ingredients can promise that the milk they use comes from untreated cows."

We support consumers’ rights to know how their food is produced and to make their own choices about what they eat. That was the essence of our position on recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone (rBGH). With regard to genetically modified organisms (GMOs), we supported the establishment of a coordinated regulatory framework within the U.S. government that allowed for full consideration of the ecological and human health implications of GMO crops, as well as for meaningful public input.

In 2000 we undertook an inventory and analysis of all ingredients with regard to genetically modified corn or soy. We found that it was virtually impossible to secure GMO-free assurances from suppliers. In addition, there was no regulatory framework in the United States to guide the definition of GMO-free. Dairy was and continues to be our primary ingredient. Since we opposed the use of rBGH, and due to some reformulation of other ingredients, our products met the definition of GMO-free in the European Union and Japan.

•E-town - Ben & Jerry’s sponsored E-town, a nationally-broadcasted radio variety show that incorporates both music and grassroots action. E-town is taped in front of a live audience. At selected shows, Ben & Jerry’s sampled ice cream and set up an Action Station, encouraging attendees to write postcards to officials urging action on a variety of issues including using rBGH-free dairy in schools, urging controlled growth in the Boulder area and encouraging proliferation of light rail/alternative transportation methods.

•Tom Joyner Foundation � We developed flavors for release in 2001 that benefited the Tom Joyner Foundation which supports scholarships at traditionally black colleges. The flavors were developed by asking Tom Joyner’s listeners (the Tom Joyner talk show is nationally-syndicated) to submit flavor suggestions. Additionally, we sponsored the Tom Joyner Foundation Fantastic Voyage, a weeklong cruise designed to raise funds for the Foundation.

•Scoop Trucks - One of the primary goals of the eight scoop trucks on the road was to support local community initiatives. In 2000 we attended over 100 events, each with a social mission focus. These included the AIDS Walk in San Francisco where we provided ice cream for 15,000 people, the Best of LA fundraiser for Meals on Wheels, the Hopes and Heroes Fundraiser in New York that supports children with cancer, and the POW-MIA road race in Boston. In total the scoop trucks raised about $32,000 for nonprofits.

•Sponsorships � Roughly half of the sponsorships in 2000 or $100,000 was spent on social mission-related sponsorships. These included EcoExpo in New York City, Live at the Weingart Center in LA in support of homeless people, the Big Apple Circus, the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless and the Jimmy Fund for children with cancer.

•OWOH Festival � This was the tenth year of this free outdoor festival at Sugarbush Resort. Our citizen action tables generated 15,000 postcards to Congress on the issue of dioxin in the environment.

•Scooperbowl � This was the twelfth year of our involvement in this event to benefit Boston’s Dana Farber Cancer Institute. Along with regional ice cream companies, we donated and scooped product for three and a half days in June. Attendees paid a $5.00 entrance fee and could eat as much ice cream as they wanted. All the money raised went to the Cancer Institute.

•Intervale Festival � This was the second year we sponsored the Intervale Festival which was produced by Gardener’s Supply and the Intervale in Burlington, Vermont. The festival was centered around environmental education and activism.

The single most prominent and most controversial issue in the 2000 session of the Vermont legislature, indeed in recent history in Vermont, was the enactment of a “Civil Union” law. This law provided same sex couples the same rights and protections of married couples following the Vermont Supreme Court’s decision in Baker vs. Vermont. Recognizing that the voice of business was silent in what we considered to be an important matter of basic human rights for lesbian and gay citizens, we designed, organized and paid for a full-page ad in the state’s leading newspaper to appear the morning of the vote. The ad was signed with the logos of 50 Vermont companies and many of them, like us, have a brand image tied to the state.

Customer contacts by traditional methods (mail and telephone) dropped significantly in 2000.

We believe our customers are shifting to electronic contacts. While prior to 2000 we did significant work to set up electronic systems on our web site, this is the first year we have tracked such contacts. Approximately 14,000 consumers contacted us through the Consumer Assistance section of our web site with either fan letters, flavor suggestions or complaints. Another 60,000 electronic contacts were made at the Frequently Asked Questions section of our web site (www.benjerry.com).

Nutritional Information

Since 1999 we have sourced our most popular t-shirt, the Woody Jackson cow design, in organic cotton from Patagonia (www.patagonia.com). These shirts were sold in our company stores through our franchises and on our web site. Although other t-shirt selections are non-organic cotton, our intent was to transition to organic cotton for all shirts as soon as is feasible.

Donations of first quality product in 2000 amounted to $14,400 (our cost, not retail value), compared to $50,000 in 1999. Examples of donation recipients include: The Children’s Defense Fund’s Child Watch Program (www.childrensdefense.org) which brings business, political and social service leaders directly into contact with children to encourage community decision-makers to take action on children’s issues; and Youth Service America’s National Youth Service Day (www.ysa.org). In Vermont we gave away 7,444 gallons of second quality product in support of a wide range of nonprofits and community activities.

Our Waterbury Plant tour is one of the leading tourist attractions in the state. We designate a part of the $2.00 charge to support a nonprofit organization in Vermont for a period of at least two years. In 2000 as in 1999, we provided the Child Care Fund of Vermont with $25,000 for its important work in expanding the availability of day care in Vermont.

Three of the entities with which we have licensing agreements generated funds for nonprofits through the agreements listed below.

Phish Food® ice cream produced royalties for the Waterwheel Foundation (www.phish.com/waterwheel/) created in 1998 by the Vermont-based band Phish. The Foundation supported “the protection and preservation of the Lake Champlain region of Vermont.” Royalties donated in 2000 totaled $249,457 compared to $244,918 in 1999.

Doonesberry® Sorbet produced royalties totaling $20,236 compared to $14,176 in 1999 for the Pauley Trudeau Foundation which supported education, AIDS treatment and prevention, reducing poverty, human rights and other progressive causes.

Wavy Gravy™ ice cream produced royalties totaling $15,032 compared to $20,614 in 1999 for Camp Win-A-Rainbow, which was founded by Wavy Gravy to offer summer camp experiences to low income children. (These sums are impacted by sales rates.)