Denny’s Announces Plans for Elimination of Trans Fats

SPARTANBURG, S.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--In a major step forward in the fight against trans fats, Denny’s (NASDAQ:DENN), the nation’s largest family dining chain, today announced an aggressive plan for eliminating trans fat from its menu items. The plan includes changing its frying oil as well as the margarine products used in food preparation in restaurants, and working with processed food manufacturers. Based on final testing that is now underway, the company anticipates systemwide roll out of a non-trans fat alternative fry shortening in its more than 1,500 restaurants as early as the first half of 2007.

“As the nation’s largest family restaurant company, we are unwavering in our commitment to doing what is right for our millions of guests. We have been working diligently to address the important issue of trans fat in the foods we serve,” said Peter Gibbons, Denny’s Vice President of Product Development. “In just the past six months, we have made significant progress on the elimination of trans fats in our fry shortening while maintaining the flavor and texture of the foods prepared in our kitchens.”

Gibbons said the company’s goal is to eliminate trans fat from the entire array of products served in Denny’s restaurants. Once the fry shortening and margarine products used in menu preparation have been converted, Denny’s intends to complete work currently underway with its suppliers to adjust processing and ingredients to further eliminate trans fats.

“Our comprehensive approach to eliminate trans fats from products -- wherever they may be introduced in the supply chain -- is another demonstration of Denny’s commitment to our guests,” Gibbons said.

Gibbons noted that Denny’s is among the first to extend the elimination of trans fats to include margarine products. He said the company is currently in the initial phase of testing on reformulated trans-fat free margarines, and is planning to begin the second phase of alternative margarine product testing in 2007.

About Denny’s:

Denny’s is America’s largest full-service family restaurant chain. For more than 50 years, Denny’s has been committed to providing guests with quality food, abundant value and a great dining atmosphere. From the award-winning D-Zone® menu to its famous Grand Slam breakfasts, Denny’s provides a variety of flavorful food and beverage choices for guests of all ages. For further information on Denny’s, please visit our web site at www.dennys.com.