May 4, 2005 9:57 AM, from staff and wire reports

Dean Foods Co earned net income totaling $66.2 million for the first quarter of 2005, compared with $69.2 million in the 2004 first quarter.

Net sales for the 2005 first quarter totaled $2.7 billion, an increase of 12% over the first quarter of 2004, mainly due to higher selling prices in the Dairy Group resulting from the pass-through of higher raw milk costs and continued strong volume growth in the Dairy Group's fluid milk operations and at WhiteWave Foods.

Consolidated operating income in the first quarter totaled $150.1 million versus $152.4 million in the first quarter of 2004. The company repaid a net amount of $151.7 million of debt during the quarter. Long-term debt as of March 31, 2005, was approximately $3.1 billion.

Gregg Engles, chairman and chief executive officer, said, "Our Dairy Group performed very well, exceeding our expectations, and we continued to see strong growth in demand for our national brands. Also, our strategic initiatives to consolidate our branded businesses and spin off our Specialty Foods Group are progressing as expected. We believe this quarter marks the beginning of what should be a year of significant progress."