MEDELA’S REVOLUTIONARY FREESTYLE® WINS JPMA INNOVATION AWARD

— 2-Phase Expression technology coupled with hands-free mobility allows active moms more freedom —

MCHENRY,Ill., September 12, 2008— Medela’s Freestyle®, the first rechargeable, hands-free, double-electric breastpump to give moms true pumping mobility, has won a coveted 2008 JPMA Innovation Award. Freestyle beat out more than 100 contenders for one of 10 spots awarded at the September ABC Expo in Las Vegas, Nev., last week. A panel of trade media and industry buyers judged the competing products.

“Since 1989, JPMA has spotted and saluted the best new products to hit the marketplace,” said Amy Chezem, communications director at JPMA. “We are pleased to honor Medela’s Freestyle breastpump this year for its technical innovation, marketability, trend-setting potential, appeal and usefulness.”

Freestyle was developed after five years of research as well as hundreds of hours spent talking to health professionals and observing more than 1,000 mom-testers. The result is a hands-free breastpump that is revolutionarily small, weighing less than a pound, but exceedingly powerful with Medela’s research-based 2-Phase Expression® technology that allows moms to get more milk in less time.

“Freestyle really demonstrates Medela’s understanding of moms’ needs,” said Rachel Mennell, Medela’s director of marketing communications. “We are thrilled that JPMA recognized the innovation that was required to create a hands-free, lightweight, portable breastpump.”
Freestyle has a suggested retail price of $379.99 and is now available at specialty and mass retailers for purchase.

About Medela
Medela provides the most technologically advanced, superior-quality breastpumps and breastfeeding accessories to nursing mothers around the world. A longtime champion of breastfeeding, Medela is the only company to develop products based on research by the world’s leading lactation experts. As a result, Medela’s breastpumps are the number one choice of healthcare professionals and healthcare facilities worldwide, including 80 percent of U.S. hospitals.

Medela has developed an extensive line of products to meet the diverse needs of nursing mothers. These products include hospital-grade, double and single electric and manual breastpumps; breastfeeding accessories such as pump cleaning products, breast care products and specialty feeding devices; and maternity and nursing intimate apparel.

Founded in 1961 by Olle Larsson in Zug, Switzerland, Medela continues to grow under the ownership of the Larsson family. Medela serves customers through a worldwide network of distribution partners in more than 90 countries and its 13 subsidiaries in the United States, Switzerland, Canada, Germany, Sweden, France, Benelux (Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg), Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, China and Spain. The company entered the United States more than 25 years ago; its U.S. headquarters are located in McHenry, Illinois.