Enjoy Life(R) and Kane County Cougars Support Dad's Request for 'Peanut-Free Night' at Ballpark: Peanut-Allergic Son and Others Can Now Safely Attend a Ballgame

More than three million Americans are allergic to peanuts or tree nuts(1), but one allergic young man will have no worries when he attends the Kane County Cougars vs. the Lansing Lugnuts baseball game at Elfstrom Stadium in Geneva, IL on Tuesday, August 7 -- thanks to his dad.

SCHILLER PARK, Ill. (BusinessWire EON) August 1, 2007 -- More than three million Americans are allergic to peanuts or tree nuts¹, but one allergic young man will have no worries when he attends the Kane County Cougars vs. the Lansing Lugnuts baseball game at Elfstrom Stadium in Geneva, IL on Tuesday, August 7 -- thanks to his dad.

But he had to leave early the only major league game he ever attended due to a reaction to peanut dust floating in the air

Everything fell quickly into place for Western Springs’ Todd Leiter-Weintraub and his son, Ethan, following a special request to Cougar management for a peanut-free night at the ballpark so that the severely peanut-allergic 5½ -year-old might attend at least one game this season. Cougar management quickly teamed up with Schiller Park, IL-based Enjoy Life Foods, which makes great-tasting allergy-friendly foods, to offer free product samples, coupons, information on allergen-free eating, and giveaways to game attendees.

“Elfstrom Stadium will be completely peanut free on August 7,” says Jeff Ney, Assistant General Manager for the Kane County Cougars. “We won’t be serving any foods containing peanuts and we’re doing a clean sweep of the stadium in advance to prevent any cross contamination,” he adds. “Some stadiums in the major leagues have experimented with peanut-free zones and peanut-free games. But we’re the first Chicago-area sports venue to offer a peanut-free night.”

According to his dad, Ethan is a big baseball fan. “But he had to leave early the only major league game he ever attended due to a reaction to peanut dust floating in the air,” says Leiter-Weintraub. “Thanks to Enjoy Life and the Kane County Cougars, Ethan will attend his first complete minor league game ever,” he adds.

“Our hope at Enjoy Life is that this special night will open the door to others who may be missing out on the great American pastime because of food allergies,” says Scott Mandell, President and Chief Executive Officer of Enjoy Life Foods. “Enjoy Life is dedicated to people with food allergies, and we’ve made it our mission to make great tasting allergen-free and gluten-free foods that most everyone can enjoy,” he adds.

Enjoy Life offers 20 delicious products including soft-baked cookies, snack bars, granola, bagels, semi-sweet chocolate chips and trail mix that are specially made to be gluten-free and free of the eight most common allergens.² They are also all natural, trans fat free and made in a dedicated nut- and gluten-free bakery.

Enjoy Life cookies and other goodies can be found at many Chicago-area natural food and grocery stores, including Whole Foods, Wild Oats, Jewel Food Stores, Sunset Foods, Fruitful Yield, Sunflower Market and Meijer. Visit www.enjoylifefoods.com for store locations and more.

Those attending the August 7 “Peanut-Free Night” at the ballpark should look for Enjoy Life’s display table on the concourse level of the park. The game begins at 6:30 pm; gates open at 4:30 pm. A fireworks display will follow the game.

About Enjoy Life Natural Brands

Enjoy Life Natural Brands, LLC (ELNB) was founded in early 2001 with the mission of making great-tasting allergy-friendly foods that most everyone can eat freely. The company launched the Enjoy Life brand in late 2002 with a broad product line that is gluten-free and free of the eight most common allergens. To meet the needs of a rapidly growing consumer base, in late 2004 the company acquired Perky’s™ 100% Natural, a line of gluten- and nut-free cereals. Today, ELNB offers 25 different Enjoy Life and Perky’s products that are sold in natural food and select grocery stores throughout the United States and Canada. For more information, visit www.enjoylifenb.com.

¹ Source: Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network (www.foodallergy.org)

² The eight most common allergens are wheat, dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, egg, soy, fish or shellfish, which account for 90% of all allergic reactions in the United States