Stride, The Ridiculously Long Lasting Gum, Introduces Stride Whitemint - A New Flavor Inspired by Sports Icon, Shaun White

EAST HANOVER, N.J., July 19, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Stride, The Ridiculously Long Lasting Gum introduces its newest flavor – Stride Whitemint.  This is the brand's first-ever custom-designed, custom-created pack inspired by sports icon, Shaun White.

(Photo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110719/LA37592)

Stride Whitemint – a long lasting intense mint – was developed to add an exciting, new flavor to the Stride Gum portfolio. White helped select the flavor and was instrumental in creating the package graphics from start to finish. The packaging offers a simple, cool design with unique and exclusive graphics that bring White's personality to life. Additionally, five unique comedic scenarios of the sports icon interacting with the Stride Ram (the brand's iconic character) were created and are randomly featured inside each pack for some fun and unexpected humor.

"Shaun White embodies what Stride Gum is all about," said Maurice Herrera, senior director – U.S. Gum, Kraft Foods. "He's authentic, unexpected and groundbreaking, and we're thrilled to have him representing us and being a part of this new product."

The name Shaun White is synonymous with excellence and defying convention. Whether he's winning gold medals at the Olympics and X Games snowboarding/skateboarding or designing the next collection for his clothing lines, White is all about finding new ways to challenge himself and excel. Continuing his long-lasting streak, he took home his fourth straight superpipe gold at the 2011 Winter X Games.

"Choosing the Whitemint flavor and working with Stride on the creative process has been fun," said White. "When Stride approached me about partnering with the brand, I knew it would be a great fit and I'm looking forward to working with them on more exciting things."

As part of his relationship with the brand, White will engage in a variety of promotional activities throughout the year, including a Whitemint TV spot set to air in the fall.

Stride Whitemint will be rolling out now through September 2011 at convenience stores, mass merchandise stores, drug stores, grocery stores and other retail outlets for a suggested retail price of $1.49.

About Stride Gum

Stride, The Ridiculously Long Lasting Gum was launched in 2006 to give gum chewers a fun, unique and long lasting chewing experience. Stride Gum, a Kraft Foods brand, comes in 13 flavors – Winterblue, Spearmint, Sweet Peppermint, Forever Fruit, Sweet Berry, Sweet Cinnamon, Nonstop Mint, Uber Bubble, Mega Mystery, Stride Shift and Stride Spark.  To find out more about Stride Gum, our friends and what the brand is up to, visit www.stridegum.com and www.facebook.com/stride-gum.

About Kraft Foods Inc.

Northfield, Ill.-based Kraft Foods Inc. (NYSE: KFT) is a global snacks powerhouse with an unrivaled portfolio of brands people love. Proudly marketing delicious biscuits, confectionery, beverages, cheese, grocery products and convenient meals in approximately 170 countries, Kraft Foods had 2010 revenue of $49.2 billion, more than half of which was earned outside North America. Twelve of the company's iconic brands -- including Cadbury, Jacobs, Kraft, LU, Maxwell House, Milka, Nabisco, Oreo, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia, Trident and Tang -- generate revenue of more than $1 billion annually, and 40 have been loved for more than a century. A leader in innovation, marketing, health & wellness and sustainability, Kraft Foods is a member of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, Standard & Poor's 500, Dow Jones Sustainability Index and Ethibel Sustainability Index. For more information, visit www.kraftfoodscompany.com and www.facebook.com/kraftfoodscorporate.

– make today delicious –

SOURCE Kraft Foods Inc.