MELVILLE, N.Y., March 24, 2005 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- The Hain Celestial Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: HAIN) a leading natural and organic beverage, snack, specialty food and personal care products company in North America and Europe, announced the launch of several new frozen and refrigerated products under the Hain Pure Foods and Ethnic Gourmet brands, which were recently featured at the Natural Products Expo, the largest natural products tradeshow in the United States.

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"We continue to be the innovator in the natural and organic sector of the food industry in meeting the needs of health conscious consumers," commented Irwin Simon, President and Chief Executive Officer of The Hain Celestial Group. "We are entering into two of the fastest growing food categories with the launch of new Hain Pure Foods refrigerated prepared meat entrees and European Recipes frozen vegetable medleys and soups, and we continue to introduce great tasting, restaurant quality frozen meals from our fast growing Ethnic Gourmet line."

Hain Pure Foods

With a 75-year history of providing all natural goodness, Hain Pure Foods serves up the full flavor nature intended with two innovations:

-- Frozen European vegetable medleys and soups are frozen within only
       three hours of harvesting and

    -- Refrigerated prepared meat entrees are all-natural from animals raised
       with no antibiotics or hormones on an all-vegetable diet.

Combining the freshness of the vegetables with the innovative self-steaming serving bowl technology provides naturally higher nutrients than most other vegetables available to consumers.

Hain Pure Foods European Recipes introduces frozen vegetable medleys with delicate seasonings to complement any meal in convenient microwaveable bowls:

-- Green Fields
    -- Country Garden
    -- Spring Harvest
    -- Gourmet Beans
    -- French Harvest
    -- Tuscan Farm

All natural with no artificial or genetically engineered ingredients or trans fat, Hain Pure Foods European Recipes introduces frozen, healthy, and fresh from the garden, home-style taste soups in convenient microwaveable bowls:

-- Minestrone Soup
    -- Carrot Soup with Coriander
    -- Mediterranean Soup
    -- Onion Soup with Grana Padano Cheese

Both Hain Pure Foods European Recipes vegetable medleys and soups are packed in innovative self-steaming bowls for maximum retention of vitamins, nutrients and flavor.

Look for Hain Pure Foods European Recipes vegetable medleys and soups in the frozen section of your market this Spring.

To fill out your plate, Hain Pure Foods launches a new line of all natural, refrigerated Prepared Meat Entrees, ready-to-eat in just a few minutes. Deliciously blending the most wholesome American-grown ingredients with animals raised on all-vegetable diets without antibiotics or hormones from family-owned farms and ranches committed to sustainable agriculture, the classic recipes feature:

-- Beef Meatloaf
    -- Pork Roast Au Jus
    -- Pork Carnitas
    -- Pulled Pork in BBQ Sauce

Look for Hain Pure Foods Prepared Meat Entrees in the refrigerated section of your market or ask your grocer.

Ethnic Gourmet

Long known for truly authentic ethnic recipes made only with the finest natural ingredients, Ethnic Gourmet has expanded its line-up with traditional Italian and Southwestern offerings under our new Taste of Italy and Taste of Santa Fe offerings in natural frozen dishes.

Ethnic Gourmet Taste of Italy features bowls and entrees:

    -- Chicken Arrabiate
    -- Vegetarian Osso Buco
    -- Trofie Pasta with Pesto
    -- Butternut Squash Ravioli with Gorgonzola Cheese Sauce

    Ethnic Gourmet Taste of Santa Fe features bowls and entrees:

    -- Zesty Chicken with Garlic Mashed Potatoes
    -- Chipotle Vegetarian Chili with Lime Crema
    -- Lime Chicken with Ancho Chile Sauce
    -- Relleno Ravioli with Mango Chipotle Salsa

All natural with no artificial or genetically engineered ingredients or trans fat, the chicken in our recipes is antibiotic and hormone free, fed an all natural diet and raised humanely in a free-to-roam environment.

Selected Hain Celestial natural and organic products are available through natural food stores, supermarkets, club stores, mass retailers, drug stores convenience stores and foodservice.

The Hain Celestial Group, Inc.

The Hain Celestial Group, headquartered in Melville, NY, is a leading natural and organic beverage, snack, specialty food and personal care products company in North America and Europe. Hain Celestial participates in almost all natural food categories with well-known brands that include Celestial Seasonings(R), Terra Chips(R), Garden of Eatin'(R), Health Valley(R), WestSoy(R), Earth's Best(R), Arrowhead Mills(R), Hain Pure Foods(R), Hollywood(R), Walnut Acres Organic(R), Imagine Foods(R), Rice Dream(R), Soy Dream(R), Rosetto(R), Ethnic Gourmet(R), Kineret(R), Yves Veggie Cuisine(R), Lima(R), Biomarche(R), Grains Noirs(R), Natumi(R) and JASON(R). For more information, visit http://www.hain-celestial.com.

SOURCE The Hain Celestial Group, Inc.

Mary Anthes of The Hain Celestial Group, Inc., +1-631-730-2460,
manthes@hain-celestial.com