Pierre Foods, Inc. (Nasdaq: FOOD) acknowledges receipt of a proposal from William E. Simon & Company ("Simon") and Triton Partners ("Triton"). The proposal, announced on July 18, 2001, is to make a tender offer to purchase Pierre Foods' common stock for $2.50 per share. A special committee of the board of directors of Pierre Foods met in person with representatives of Simon and Triton on July 27 to discuss details of their proposal. The special committee is studying the Simon/Triton proposal and expects to continue its discussions with representatives of Simon and Triton. Because the board has not rejected the Simon/Triton proposal, the management group that had contracted to purchase the company for $1.21 per share, subject to conditions including shareholder approval, now has the right to terminate its contract. The management group also is in discussions with representatives of the special committee. If Simon and Triton do commence a tender offer, then, no more than ten business days after the commencement of the offer, the board of directors will advise the shareholders publicly whether it recommends acceptance or rejection of the offer, expresses no opinion and remains neutral toward the offer or is unable to take a position with respect to the offer and, in any case, the reasons for its position. The directors request that the shareholders defer their determinations to accept or reject a tender offer until they have been advised of the board's position.