Press Release Details

Net sales for fiscal year 2000’s second quarter totaled $231.4 million, an increase of 7.2 percent over the $215.7 million recorded in the second quarter a year ago. The Company incurred a net loss per share of ($0.07) for the second quarter of fiscal 2000, excluding the impact of certain non-recurring and special charges described below. Including the non-recurring and special charges the Company incurred a net loss per share of ($0.25). These charges include approximately $1.5 million, net of tax, of restructuring and asset impairment charges related to the write-off of certain Eastern Region fixed assets and the planned closing of our Chicago facility, and approximately $1.8 million, net of tax, of severance costs and the write-off of current assets in the Eastern Region and Chicago.

Management attributes these results to the previously discussed issues related to the consolidation of its Eastern Region systems and operations which have resulted in lower sales growth, lower gross margins and higher operating expenses in the Eastern Region.

Commenting on the Company’s performance, Chief Executive Officer Michael Funk said, “We are on target with our recovery plan in the Eastern Region and remain confident about the long term strength of our business and our return to profitability beginning next quarter.”

The Company also announced today that the Board of Directors has elected James P. Heffernan to fill a vacant seat on it’s Board. Mr.Heffernan currently serves as a Trustee for the New York Racing Association and is on the Board of Directors and Chairman of the Finance Committee of Columbia Gas System. Mr. Heffernan formerly served as President of WHR Management Corp. and Whitman Heffernan Rhein & Co., Inc. Mr. Heffernan also served as the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer of Danielson Holding Corporation.

Additionally the Company announced the appointment of Michael Michel as Vice President of Operations. Mr. Michel has served as the Director of Operations for the Western Region of United Natural Foods since 1996. From 1989 until 1996, Mr. Michel served as the Warehouse Manager of Mountain People’s Warehouse, now a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company.

Conference Call
United Natural Foods management will host a conference call to discuss its second quarter results at 11:00 a.m. (Eastern Standard Time) on March 6, 2000. The conference may be accessed by dialing 703-871-3026 just prior to the scheduled start time. The call may also be accessed on the Internet at www.vcall.com.

For more information on United Natural Foods, Inc., via fax at no charge, please dial 1-800-PRO-INFO and enter the Company’s ticker symbol, UNFI.

This press release contains forward-looking statements relating to the timing and expected costs associated with executive severance, the closing of our Chicago, Illinois facility and the writedown of certain assets, and such statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Additional information concerning factors that could cause actual results to materially differ from those in the forward-looking statements is contained in the Company’s SEC filings, including its periodic reports filed under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (copies of which are available upon request from the Company’s investor relations department).