Emerald Nuts Sponsors Final Five Miles of the 2009 ING New York City Marathon

Emerald supports healthy lifestyles and will activate several on-site promotions to help runners reach their 26.2 mile goal. When runners reach mile 23, just as they turn into Central Park at 90th Street and 5th Avenue, they will be greeted by members of the Emerald cheer zone welcoming them to the final miles of the race. During the race, an Emerald street team will be sharing product samples with spectators at several spots along the final five miles of the ING New York City Marathon course, including Central Park South. Before and after the race, runners will receive Emerald's natural energy products such as Cocoa Roast Almonds and Dry Roasted Almonds, along with discount coupons for future purchases.

"This is the 2nd year of Emerald's successful "Final Five" program which educates runners across the country about the natural energy benefits of Emerald nuts," said Jeff Ngo, Director of Marketing for Diamond Foods. "We are thrilled to sponsor the 40th running of the New York City Marathon and encourage all runners to factor good nutrition into their training regimen."

Emerald is the title sponsor of several runs and sporting events throughout the year. Emerald will return to New York City at the end of this year as the title sponsor of The Emerald Nuts Midnight Run through Central Park, which will be held on New Year's Eve, December 31, 2009. The 2009 Emerald Bowl, college football's only postseason bowl game to match opponents from the Pacific-10 and Atlantic Coast Conferences, will be played Saturday, December 26 at AT&T Park in downtown San Francisco, the home of the San Francisco Giants. The Emerald Across the Bay 12K over the Golden Gate Bridge, which is held each March in San Francisco, has been called the best bridge run in America by Runner's World magazine.

About Diamond Foods

Diamond is a leading branded food company specializing in processing, marketing and distributing culinary nuts and snack products under the Diamond(R), Emerald(R) and Pop Secret(R) brands.

About New York Road Runners

New York Road Runners, founded in 1958, is dedicated to promoting the sport of distance running, enhancing health and fitness for all, and responding to community needs. Our road races and other fitness programs draw upwards of 300,000 runners annually, and together with our magazine and website support and promote professional and recreational running. A staff of more than 100, assisted by thousands of volunteers, stages the ING New York City Marathon, as well as a road race nearly every weekend plus many track and cross country events. NYRR's home base in New York, and its lifelong identification with Central Park, have given many of its events iconic status, attracting the world's top professional runners. Our youth programs provide running to nearly 100,000 schoolchildren in New York City, around the country, and in South Africa who would otherwise have few or no fitness opportunities. For more information visit, www.nyrr.org.

About The ING New York City Marathon

The premier event of New York Road Runners, the ING New York City Marathon is one of the world's great road races, drawing nearly 105,000 applicants. The race attracts many world-class professional athletes, not only for the more than $600,000 in prize money, but also for the chance to excel in the media capital of the world before two million cheering spectators and a worldwide broadcast reach of 330 million. As any one of the nearly 788,000 past participants will attest, crossing the finish line in Central Park is one of the great thrills of a lifetime. For more information visit, www.ingnycmarathon.org.

Corporate Web Site: www.diamondfoods.com

Consumer Web Sites: www.emeraldnuts.com, www.diamondnuts.com, and www.feedyourfingers.com

SOURCE: Diamond Foods

Diamond Foods, Inc. 
Linda Segre, 415-230-7924 (Media) 
SVP Corporate Strategy and Communications 
lsegre@diamondfoods.com 
Bob Philipps, 415-445-7426 (Investors) 
VP, Treasury & Investor Relations 
bphilipps@diamondfoods.com