Family Express Jumps into the Ethanol Pool

VALPARAISO, Ind. -- Family Express Corp., operator of 47 convenience stores, unveiled plans to bring E85 to 20 locations throughout Northwest and North Central Indiana by the end of 2007. The effort complements those by the state's initiatives, and calls for the expansion of E85 facilities for consumers across the northern part of the state.

"Our commitment to providing alternative fuel sources is based on the necessity for our country to fulfill its energy needs and our felt obligation to complement the State of Indiana's initiative to grow substantially our ethanol producing infrastructure," said Gus Olympidis, president and CEO of Family Express.

As car manufacturers increase production of flex-fuel vehicles, Family Express will be ready to serve consumer's various needs, it stated in a release. Consumers can determine if their current vehicle is capable of using E85 by going to www.e85fuel.com/e85101/flexfuelvehicles.php.

The development of two Family Express E85 facilities were completed recently in Valparaiso and Lafayette, Ind. Five additional stores will offer E85 within the next two months and within a year, 20 of the company's stores will pump the alternative fuel. "We are going to be deploying customer-friendly attractive facilities that will be deserving of our customers' confidence," said Olympidis.

"The most remarkable attribute of ethanol is that it is produced by folks near our community that are not hostile to our country and our treasured way of life. Things have changed irreversibly since Sept. 11, 2001 and it is long overdue that government and the private sector come together to make us all less dependent on foreign oil," said Olympidis. "E85 cannot do it alone, but I share the view that we could be reducing our dependence dramatically within a decade or so with a selfless commitment from the private sector and the correct public policy."

Family Express, headquartered in Valparaiso, Ind., is characterized by friendly associates, proprietary brands and a vertically integrated distribution and manufacturing model. The company's central distribution, central bakery and central commissary are located in Valparaiso. Family Express has over 18 million customer visits annually and it generates over $50 million in taxes for Northwest and North Central Indiana.
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