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            Mother's Day dining traffic results in record sales week for SYSCO    
            
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            [MAY 14, 2005]  
            
            
            HOUSTON -- SYSCO 
            Corporation (NYSE:SYY), North America's largest food service 
            marketer and distributor, announced Thursday that it generated 
            record sales of $672 million during the week ended May 7. That 
            figure eclipses the previous record sales week of $636 million, 
            which was attained in the week preceding Mother's Day last year. | 
        
            | "Every year since SYSCO began tracking 
            record sales in 1978 we have achieved record sales in the week 
            leading up to the Mother's Day holiday," said Richard J. Schnieders, 
            chairman and chief executive officer of SYSCO. "For Mother's Day 
            2005, when according to National Restaurant Association data nearly 
            40 percent of Americans dined out to recognize the special women in 
            their lives, we once again posted a strong record sales week, with 
            half of our operating units posting individual record sales weeks 
            for the week ended May 7, 2005. "The implementation of business 
            review and business development strategies at our operating 
            companies is generating sound results for our customers and for 
            SYSCO. By providing menu analysis, product recommendations and 
            strategic suggestions we position our customers and ourselves for 
            success in our competitive and growing food service industry," 
            Schnieders said. 
            
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             | 
             SYSCO, the largest food service 
            marketing and distribution organization in North America, provides 
            food and related products and services to approximately 400,000 
            restaurants, health care and educational facilities, lodging 
            establishments, and other food service customers, generating sales 
            of $30 billion for calendar year 2004. SYSCO's operations, supported 
            by approximately 46,000 associates, are located throughout the 
            United States and Canada and include broad-line food service 
            distribution companies, specialty produce and custom-cut meat 
            operations, Asian cuisine food service distributors, hotel supply 
            operations, and chain restaurant distribution subsidiaries. For more information about SYSCO, 
            visit the company's home page at 
            www.sysco.com.  [SYSCO 
            Corporation news release] |