Land O'Lakes and Piper Jaffray Honored by Corporate Volunteerism Council Twin Cities

For Immediate Release via Newsletter or E-mail

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Minneapolis/St. Paul (April 5, 2005) The Corporate Volunteerism Council Twin Cities (CVC) is proud to honor Land O'Lakes and Piper Jaffray for their outstanding corporate volunteer programs with the presentation of CVC's annual Leadership and Spotlight Awards. The awards will be presented at the Corporate Volunteerism Council Twin Cities' annual luncheon and awards presentation on Thursday, April 7, at the Town and Country Club in St. Paul. Amy Hockert of KARE-11 television will emcee the program and Dr. Reatha Clark King will give the keynote address.

The Corporate Volunteerism Council's Leadership Award recognizes the outstanding leadership of Land O'Lakes and its Community Splash! employee volunteer program. “For many years, Land O'Lakes has been a leader in our community and we are happy to recognize its achievements in volunteerism,” said David Jones, CVC President. “Land O'Lakes is a great corporate citizen and its encouragement of employees to get out in the community to make a difference is something we are pleased to award and celebrate.”

Land O'Lakes employees and retirees volunteer time and resources to the community through individual volunteerism, participation in company-sponsored opportunities, and group volunteerism initiated by various locations and departments. Community Splash! launched in 2004, and was designed specifically to engage plant facilities in social responsibility, to educate them about community needs and provide them with the tools needed to promote volunteerism at their locations.

As a result of the new Land O'Lakes Community Splash! program, the number of community service projects in the Twin Cities has more than doubled and the number of plant facility projects has quadrupled.

“Encouraging, recognizing and rewarding our employees for taking an active role in their communities is an essential element in Land O'Lakes commitment to being a responsible and responsive corporate citizen,” said Jack Gherty, President and CEO of Land O'Lakes. “The Big Splash program accomplishes this and is one part of our long-standing dedication to corporate, team and individual social responsibility. Being a leader in our communities is an important part of our culture and truly helps define who Land O'Lakes is as an organization.”

With the Leadership Award comes a $500 CVC contribution to a nonprofit of the company's choice. Land O'Lakes has selected Melrose Community Food Shelf as the beneficiary of its award.

The Corporate Volunteerism Council's Spotlight Award recognizes the outstanding initiative, A Place to Call Home, of Piper Jaffray and Neighborhood Development Center, Inc. (NDC). “The CVC is thrilled to honor Piper Jaffray for its extraordinary efforts in our community, specifically this unique relationship and volunteer program with NDC,” said Jones. “Through a combination of employee volunteerism and corporate support, Piper Jaffray is truly making a difference.”

A Place to Call Home is an initiative to improve the lives of residents and the health of local businesses in the Midtown Phillips neighborhood in Minneapolis. Over a three-year period, Piper Jaffray will contribute substantial employee volunteer hours and a total of $500,000 to the program, with an initial grant of $175,000 in 2004.

To maximize its contributions, Piper Jaffray has partnered with NDC, a community-based nonprofit organization that works in low-income communities in St. Paul, Minneapolis and surrounding suburbs of greater Minnesota. NDC previously led the development in the Midtown Phillips neighborhood of the Mercado Central, a thriving Latino community market consisting of 49 Latino-owned businesses that collectively generate more than $4 million in sales per year.

“One of our guiding principles is to contribute our talents and resources to serve the communities in which we live and work,” said Andrew Duff, chairman and chief executive officer of Piper Jaffray. “We are thrilled to participate in the success of the A Place to Call Home initiative. Our employees have the opportunity to use their time and talent in several unique ways including mentoring entrepreneurs, providing expertise in financing, marketing, computer literacy and much more."

Piper Jaffray has selected NDC as the recipient of its $500 CVC contribution.

For more information about Corporate Volunteerism Council-Twin Cities, visit www.cvctc.org.

The Corporate Volunteerism Council-Twin Cities (CVC) is a professional organization consisting primarily of corporate members and also includes associate nonprofit members – all of which promote volunteerism throughout the community.

CVC Twin Cities advocates, supports, and grows workplace volunteerism to improve our community.

Land O'Lakes, Inc. (www.landolakesinc.com) is a national farmer-owned food and agricultural cooperative with annual sales of more than $7 billion. Land O'Lakes does business in all 50 states and more than 50 countries. It is a leading marketer of a full line of dairy-based consumer, foodservice and food ingredient products across the United States ; serves its international customers with a variety of food and animal feed ingredients; and provides farmers and ranchers with an extensive line of agricultural supplies (feed, seed, crop nutrients and crop protection products) and services.

Piper Jaffray & Co. is the chief operating subsidiary of Piper Jaffray Companies (NYSE: PJC), a focused securities firm dedicated to delivering superior financial advice, investment products and transaction execution within selected sectors of the financial services marketplace. The company operates through two primary revenue-generating segments: Capital Markets and Private Client Services. Piper Jaffray & Co. has served corporations, government and non-profit entities, institutional investors and the financial advisory needs of private individuals since 1895. Headquartered in Minneapolis, Piper Jaffray has approximately 3,000 employees in 104 offices in 23 states across the country and in London. For more information about Piper Jaffray, visit us online at www.piperjaffray.com.

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