Perdue Survey Reveals Busy Americans Devote Extra Time to Putting a Great Meal on the Dinner Table

SALISBURY, Md., July 27, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Perdue Farms announced new survey findings that reveal 91 percent of Americans believe that a sit-down, home-cooked meal is important and 79 percent will go to great lengths to get a meal on the table that the whole family will enjoy.  To celebrate consumers' commitment to providing the very best meals for their families, Perdue is kicking-off a nationwide search to find Americans' best chicken dishes. The search is part of Perdue's We Believe in a Better Chicken™ campaign, which underscores the company's commitment to going above and beyond, with programs such as the USDA Processed Verified Seal, to deliver the best possible poultry products for consumers.  

Perdue is the first poultry company to receive the Seal, which verifies that PERDUE® Fresh, All Natural Chicken products have been raised without cages, fed an all-vegetarian diet with no animal by-products and, on selected items, have their signature tenderness guarantee.

The survey, conducted by Perdue and Infogroup/Opinion Research Corporation, also indicates surprising findings about consumers' personalization of the meal they put on the dinner table, including:

• Eighty-eight percent will customize recipes to please their families
• Sixty-one percent will experiment with multiple recipes for the same dish
• Fifty-eight percent will go to multiple stores to purchase the right ingredients to provide the very best meal for their family
• Sixty-eight percent believe that a chicken dinner is one of the healthiest meals they can serve their families

When asked which chicken dish is their best, survey respondents were divided between tried and true favorites, such as Roasted Chicken (26 percent), Fried Chicken (22 percent) and Chicken and Vegetables (15 percent). When asked which dish they'd most like to learn to cook, the majority of respondents selected more complicated dishes like Chicken Cordon Bleu and Chicken Parmesan.

"For more than 90 years, we've been committed to providing Americans and their families with the best possible poultry," said Jim Perdue, chairman of Perdue Farms. "We Believe in a Better Chicken™ is at the core of who we are, what we do and what we've been doing since 1920.  We are committed to making better chicken and we know consumers are committed to providing the very best meal for their families every day. We are excited to celebrate those meals through our search to find the best chicken dishes from Americans across the country."

To enter the contest, participants are encouraged to visit the Perdue Chicken Facebook page, upload a photo of their best chicken dish and a description [up to 100 words] their best chicken dish and what they do to make it the best. Weekly prizes will be awarded to winners selected at random and the grand prize winner, selected by a panel of judges, including Jim Perdue, will win free chicken for a year.

Americans' best chicken dishes, however, are far from being just a thing of the present. Perdue has also partnered with food historian, Lynne Olver, to share more about America's best chicken dishes over the past 100 years, including highlights of key milestones in Perdue's history such as the company starting to mix its own feed formulations in 1953, Perdue becoming the first poultry processor to add nutritional labels on its product in 1983 (before it was required by the government) and most recently, becoming the first poultry company to receive the USDA Process Verified Seal.  

For the full timeline of America's favorite chicken dishes since the 17th century - including everything from Chicken Fricassee in the 1600s, to the rise of Coq Au Vin in the 1960s, to present day internationally-infused dishes such as Chicken Adobo, Kebabs and more, visit www.facebook.com/perduechicken.

About Perdue

The PERDUE® brand is the No. 1 brand of fresh chicken in the Eastern United States. Ranked third largest in the poultry industry, Perdue Incorporated is a leading international food and agriculture business providing quality products and services to customers in more than 100 countries.  Privately held and family-run for three generations, the company employs more than 21,000 associates and partners with 2,200 independent farm families -- all who share in the commitment to quality, service and reliability that has guided the company since its founding in 1920.  For more information, visit www.perdue.com®.  

CONTEST/SWEEPSTAKES ABBREVIATED RULES:  NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Void outside the 50 U.S. and D.C. and where prohibited by law. Open only to legal U.S. residents (incl. D.C.) who are at least the age of majority in their state of permanent residence as of 7/25/11. Begins at 2:00:00 PM ET on 7/27/11 to 11:59:59 PM ET on 8/21/11.  To enter, click on the "Like" button on our Facebook page (if you have not already "Liked" this page); click the "We Believe" tab and follow the instructions to enter.  For full Official Rules, go to www.facebook.com/perduechicken.  Sponsor: Perdue Farms Incorporated, 31149 Old Ocean City Road, Salisbury, MD 21804.

SOURCE Perdue