GLOBAL SUPERSTAR DOLLY PARTON AND CONAGRA BRANDS ENTER EXCLUSIVE LICENSING PARTNERSHIP FOR RETAIL FOOD

Partnership Expands Beyond Duncan Hines Sweet Treats to Breadth of New Food Categories

CHICAGO, Jan. 23, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Following the continued success of her multiyear partnership with Duncan Hines, global icon and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee, Dolly Parton has entered into an unprecedented, exclusive agreement with Duncan Hines' parent company, Conagra Brands (NYSE: CAG), one of North America's leading branded food companies, to develop a line of retail food items. The new line of Dolly Parton food products will include frozen, refrigerated, grocery and snack items inspired by down-home comfort cuisine.  

"I loved co-creating my Duncan Hines line with Conagra and I'm thrilled we're going well beyond the baking aisle with new items across the store," said Dolly Parton. "We're looking to continue to inspire special moments in the kitchen, with some of my family's favorite recipes, and I think people are really going to love them!" 

The new products will start rolling onto store shelves nationwide this January, with an expanded line-up of Duncan Hines' mixes including Chocolate Cake Mix, Yellow Cake Mix, Cinnamon Crumb Cake Mix, Blueberry Muffin Mix and Banana Nut Muffin Mix. Additionally, the first single branded Dolly Parton item, Buttermilk Pancake Mix, will start hitting shelves this winter and marks Dolly's first foray into the breakfast category. More items are expected to launch later in 2024 including frozen items.

"This unprecedented partnership with Dolly Parton gives us an incredible opportunity to further cement Conagra Brands in our established categories, while authentically positioning us for tremendous growth in new ones including Southern cooking and comfort food," said Tom McGough, Chief Operating Officer at Conagra Brands.

"We are beyond thrilled to build on the success of our partnership with one of the most beloved and respected women in the world," added Lucy Brady, President of Grocery & Snacks at Conagra Brands. "With our expertise in food, we'll help bring Dolly's vision and favorite recipes to so many tables across America, with delicious new offerings across a wide range of eating occasions."

The multi-year, multi-category agreement was facilitated by licensing agency IMG.

Visit bakingwithdolly.com to learn more about the current and future line-up of Dolly Parton food products.

Limited-Edition Baking Kit 
Duncan Hines' Dolly Parton's newest baking mixes and frostings are flowing through to stores nationwide now on a rolling launch, but the brand is giving consumers a chance to try some of the new items and get exclusive, limited-edition Dolly keepsakes with the new Dolly Parton Bake Like a Rockstar Baking Collection, available online only while supplies last.

The kit includes:

• Dolly Parton's Blueberry Muffin Mix, Cinnamon Swirl Crumb Cake Mix, Favorite Chocolate Cake Mix and Creamy Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
• An exclusive magnet featuring the popular illustration of Dolly from the Duncan Hines' packaging
• A Dolly-inspired, collectible oven mitt
• Recipe cards that feature some of Dolly's favorite recipes like Lemon Glazed Blueberry Crumb Cake and Coffee Cake Muffins.

Dolly Parton's Bake Like a Rockstar Baking Collection can be purchased for $40.00 (plus shipping and handling). Early access to the kit will be unlocked on Jan. 24 at 11:00 AM ET, with the full sale going live later that day at 3:00 PM ET. The new Dolly Baking Collection is available while supplies last at bakingwithdolly.com.

About Conagra Brands
Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE: CAG), headquartered in Chicago, is one of North America's leading branded food companies. Guided by an entrepreneurial spirit, Conagra Brands combines a rich heritage of making great food with a sharpened focus on innovation. The company's portfolio is evolving to satisfy people's changing food preferences. Conagra's iconic brands, such as Birds Eye®, Duncan Hines®, Healthy Choice®, Marie Callender's®, Reddi-wip®, and Slim Jim®, as well as emerging brands, including Angie's® BOOMCHICKAPOP®, Duke's®, Earth Balance®, Gardein®, and Frontera®, offer choices for every occasion. For more information, visit www.conagrabrands.com.

About Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton is the most honored and revered multi-hyphenate of all time and was recently inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Her current album "Rockstar" made history by scoring the biggest album debut sales week of her seven-decade career and earning her six #1s on the Billboard charts - Top Rock Albums, Top Rock & Alternative Albums, Top Country Albums, Top Album Sales, Top Current Album Sales, and Independent Albums. The landmark album also claimed the #3 spot on the Billboard 200 chart, her highest position ever. Achieving 27 RIAA-certified gold, platinum, and multi-platinum awards, she has had 26 songs reach #1 on the Billboard country charts, a record for a female artist. Parton is the first artist to have topped Billboard's Adult Contemporary, Christian AC Songs, Hot Country Songs, Christian Airplay, Rock Digital Songs, Country Airplay and Dance/Mix Show Airplay radio charts. Parton became the first country artist honored as Grammy MusiCares Person of the Year given out by NARAS. She has 49 career Top 10 country albums, a record for any artist, and 120 career-charted singles over the past 50+ years. On October 17, 2023, she released her second New York Times Best Seller coffee table book in a trilogy called "Behind The Seams:  My Life in Rhinestones." The first of the series was bestselling coffee table book "Songteller:  My Life in Lyrics."

In 2014, the RIAA recognized her impact on recorded music with a plaque commemorating more than 100 million units sold worldwide. She has amassed eleven Grammy Awards and 52 nominations, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, 10 Country Music Association Awards, including Entertainer of the Year; five Academy of Country Music Awards, also including a nod for Entertainer of the Year; four People's Choice Awards; and three American Music Awards. In 1999, Parton was inducted as a member of the coveted Country Music Hall of Fame.

Dolly has the largest fan base of all measured music artists in the YouGov database at #1 with 198 million. She has the #1 Q Score of all performers, solo and group. Dolly is one of only 25 celebrities in the E-poll database to have an E-score of 100 and has maintained that perfect rating for 8 years. She recently won Best Brand Award, Celebrity, Influencer and Fashion at the 2023 Licensing International Excellence Awards.

To date, Parton has donated over 222 million books to children around the world with her Imagination Library. Her children's book, Coat of Many Colors, was dedicated to the Library of Congress to honor the Imagination Library's 100 millionth book donation. In March of 2022, Parton released the book Run Rose Run which she co-authored with James Patterson which sat at # 1 on the New York Times Best Sellers List for 5 weeks, a record for this decade. She also released an accompanying album of the same name with original songs inspired by the book which reached #1 on three charts simultaneously --- Country, Americana/Folk and Bluegrass Albums. From her "Coat of Many Colors" while working "9 to 5," no dream is too big and no mountain too high for the country girl who turned the world into her stage.   

About IMG 
IMG is a global leader in sports, fashion, events and media. The company manages some of the world's greatest athletes and fashion icons; owns and operates hundreds of live events annually; and is a leading independent producer and distributor of sports and entertainment media. IMG also specializes in licensing, sports training and league development. IMG is a subsidiary of Endeavor, a global sports and entertainment company.

For more information, please contact:                                                                                                            
Lanie Friedman
Conagra Brands
(312) 549-5316
[email protected]

Marcel Pariseau
True Public Relations
(323) 957-0730
[email protected]

SOURCE Conagra Brands, Inc.