<SEC-DOCUMENT>0000902664-23-003298.txt : 20230525
<SEC-HEADER>0000902664-23-003298.hdr.sgml : 20230525
<ACCEPTANCE-DATETIME>20230525113023
ACCESSION NUMBER:		0000902664-23-003298
CONFORMED SUBMISSION TYPE:	DFAN14A
PUBLIC DOCUMENT COUNT:		1
FILED AS OF DATE:		20230525
DATE AS OF CHANGE:		20230525

SUBJECT COMPANY:	

	COMPANY DATA:	
		COMPANY CONFORMED NAME:			Freshpet, Inc.
		CENTRAL INDEX KEY:			0001611647
		STANDARD INDUSTRIAL CLASSIFICATION:	GRAIN MILL PRODUCTS [2040]
		IRS NUMBER:				201884894
		STATE OF INCORPORATION:			DE
		FISCAL YEAR END:			1231

	FILING VALUES:
		FORM TYPE:		DFAN14A
		SEC ACT:		1934 Act
		SEC FILE NUMBER:	001-36729
		FILM NUMBER:		23957983

	BUSINESS ADDRESS:	
		STREET 1:		400 PLAZA DRIVE, 1ST FLOOR
		CITY:			SECAUCUS
		STATE:			NJ
		ZIP:			07094
		BUSINESS PHONE:		201-520-4000

	MAIL ADDRESS:	
		STREET 1:		400 PLAZA DRIVE, 1ST FLOOR
		CITY:			SECAUCUS
		STATE:			NJ
		ZIP:			07094

FILED BY:		

	COMPANY DATA:	
		COMPANY CONFORMED NAME:			JANA PARTNERS LLC
		CENTRAL INDEX KEY:			0001159159
		IRS NUMBER:				000000000
		STATE OF INCORPORATION:			DE
		FISCAL YEAR END:			1231

	FILING VALUES:
		FORM TYPE:		DFAN14A

	BUSINESS ADDRESS:	
		STREET 1:		767 FIFTH AVENUE
		STREET 2:		8TH FLOOR
		CITY:			NEW YORK
		STATE:			NY
		ZIP:			10153
		BUSINESS PHONE:		(212) 455-0900

	MAIL ADDRESS:	
		STREET 1:		767 FIFTH AVENUE
		STREET 2:		8TH FLOOR
		CITY:			NEW YORK
		STATE:			NY
		ZIP:			10153
</SEC-HEADER>
<DOCUMENT>
<TYPE>DFAN14A
<SEQUENCE>1
<FILENAME>p23-1650dfan14a.htm
<DESCRIPTION>FRESHPET, INC.
<TEXT>
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<P STYLE="font: 12pt/107% Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center">SCHEDULE 14A</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt/107% Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center">Proxy Statement Pursuant to Section 14(a)</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt/107% Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center">of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt/107% Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt/107% Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt/107% Calibri, Helvetica, Sans-Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify"><FONT STYLE="font-family: Times New Roman, Times, Serif">Filed
by the Registrant </FONT> <FONT STYLE="font-family: Wingdings">&#168; </FONT></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt/107% Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt/107% Calibri, Helvetica, Sans-Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify"><FONT STYLE="font-family: Times New Roman, Times, Serif">Filed
by a Party other than the Registrant </FONT> <FONT STYLE="font-family: Wingdings">&#254; </FONT></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt/107% Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt/107% Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">Check the appropriate box:</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt/107% Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">&nbsp;</P>

<TABLE CELLSPACING="0" CELLPADDING="0" STYLE="width: 100%; font: 11pt Calibri, Helvetica, Sans-Serif; border-collapse: collapse">
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    <TD STYLE="width: 7%; padding-right: 5.4pt; padding-left: 5.4pt; line-height: 107%">&nbsp;&#9744;</TD>
    <TD STYLE="width: 93%; padding-right: 5.4pt; padding-left: 5.4pt; line-height: 107%"><FONT STYLE="font-family: Times New Roman, Times, Serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%">Preliminary Proxy Statement</FONT></TD></TR>
  <TR>
    <TD STYLE="padding-right: 5.4pt; padding-left: 5.4pt; line-height: 107%">&nbsp;&#9744;</TD>
    <TD STYLE="padding-right: 5.4pt; padding-left: 5.4pt; line-height: 107%"><FONT STYLE="font-family: Times New Roman, Times, Serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%">Confidential, for Use of the Commission Only (as permitted by Rule 14a-6(e)(2))</FONT></TD></TR>
  <TR>
    <TD STYLE="padding-right: 5.4pt; padding-left: 5.4pt; line-height: 107%">&nbsp;&#9744;</TD>
    <TD STYLE="padding-right: 5.4pt; padding-left: 5.4pt; line-height: 107%"><FONT STYLE="font-family: Times New Roman, Times, Serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%">Definitive Proxy Statement</FONT></TD></TR>
  <TR>
    <TD STYLE="padding-right: 5.4pt; padding-left: 5.4pt; line-height: 107%">&nbsp;&#9744;</TD>
    <TD STYLE="padding-right: 5.4pt; padding-left: 5.4pt; line-height: 107%"><FONT STYLE="font-family: Times New Roman, Times, Serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%">Definitive Additional Materials</FONT></TD></TR>
  <TR>
    <TD STYLE="padding-right: 5.4pt; padding-left: 5.4pt; line-height: 107%">&nbsp;&#9745;</TD>
    <TD STYLE="padding-right: 5.4pt; padding-left: 5.4pt; line-height: 107%"><FONT STYLE="font-family: Times New Roman, Times, Serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%">Soliciting Material Under Rule 14a-12</FONT></TD></TR>
  </TABLE>
<P STYLE="font: 12pt/107% Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt/107% Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 22pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center"><B>Freshpet, Inc.</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center">(Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center; text-indent: 0.5in"><B>&nbsp;</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center"><B>JANA Partners LLC</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center"><B>JANA Partners Management, LP</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center"><B>JANA Strategic Investments Benchmark Master Fund,
L.P.</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center"><B>Barry Rosenstein</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center"><B>Scott Ostfeld</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center"><B>Diane Dietz Suciu</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center"><B>Timothy R. McLevish</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center"><B>Kurt T. Schmidt</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center"><B>Ginger Gorden</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center"><B>James Lillie</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center"><B>Carsten Charles (CC) Sabathia, Jr.</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center"><B>Dwyane Wade</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center"><B>&nbsp;</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt/107% Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center"><B>&nbsp;</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt/107% Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center">(Name of Person(s) Filing Proxy Statement, if
other than the Registrant)</P>


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<P STYLE="font: 10pt/107% Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0 0 8pt">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 10pt/107% Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0 0 8pt">Payment of Filing Fee (Check all boxes that apply):</P>

<TABLE CELLSPACING="0" CELLPADDING="0" STYLE="width: 100%; font: 11pt Calibri, Helvetica, Sans-Serif; border-collapse: collapse">
  <TR>
    <TD STYLE="width: 7%; padding-right: 5.4pt; padding-bottom: 8pt; padding-left: 5.4pt; line-height: 85%">&nbsp;&#9745;</TD>
    <TD STYLE="width: 93%; padding-right: 5.4pt; padding-bottom: 8pt; padding-left: 5.4pt; line-height: 85%"><FONT STYLE="font-family: Times New Roman, Times, Serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 85%">No fee required.</FONT></TD></TR>
  <TR>
    <TD STYLE="padding-right: 5.4pt; padding-bottom: 8pt; padding-left: 5.4pt; line-height: 85%">&#9744;&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD STYLE="padding-right: 5.4pt; padding-bottom: 8pt; padding-left: 5.4pt; line-height: 85%"><FONT STYLE="font-family: Times New Roman, Times, Serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 85%">Fee paid previously with preliminary materials.</FONT></TD></TR>
  <TR>
    <TD STYLE="padding-right: 5.4pt; padding-bottom: 8pt; padding-left: 5.4pt; line-height: 85%">&#9744;&nbsp;</TD>
    <TD STYLE="padding-right: 5.4pt; padding-bottom: 8pt; padding-left: 5.4pt; line-height: 85%"><FONT STYLE="font-family: Times New Roman, Times, Serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 85%">Fee computed on table in exhibit required by Item 25(b) per Exchange Act Rules 14a6(i)(1) and 0-11.</FONT></TD></TR>
  </TABLE>

<P STYLE="font: 10pt/85% Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0 0 8pt; text-align: justify">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0"></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt/107% Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0 0 8pt">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt/107% Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0 0 8pt">&nbsp;</P>


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<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center"><B>JANA PARTNERS CALLS ON FRESHPET BOARD TO IMMEDIATELY
RECTIFY HIGHLY ENTRENCHING ACTIONS INTENDED TO DISENFRANCHISE SHAREHOLDERS AND MANIPULATE SHAREHOLDER VOTE</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center"><I>Believes eleventh hour changes to size and composition
of Freshpet&rsquo;s Board ahead of contested 2023 annual meeting is clear violation of Delaware law and Board&rsquo;s fiduciary duties</I></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: center">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="text-align: justify; font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0"><B>NEW YORK&mdash;May 25, 2023&mdash;</B>JANA Partners (&ldquo;JANA&rdquo;),
which along with its affiliates and partners, owns 9.3% of Freshpet, Inc. (&ldquo;Freshpet&rdquo; or the &ldquo;Company&rdquo;)
(NASDAQ:FRPT), today delivered the following letter to the legal counsel of the Freshpet Board of Directors (the &ldquo;Board&rdquo;)
regarding recent changes to the size and composition of the Board. By adopting such changes, which JANA believes are a desperate attempt
to entrench Freshpet&rsquo;s incumbent directors and impede the free exercise of the shareholder franchise at the Company&rsquo;s 2023
Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the &ldquo;Annual Meeting&rdquo;), the Board has breached its fiduciary duties.</P>

<P STYLE="text-align: justify; font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="text-align: justify; font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0">Barry Rosenstein and Scott Ostfeld, Managing Partners at JANA, commented,
&ldquo;The Freshpet Board has a track record of poor decision making, lax oversight and apparent disregard for corporate governance. The
Board&rsquo;s latest stunt&mdash;reducing the number of directors up for election amid a contested Annual Meeting and abruptly accelerating
its date&mdash;is an overt attempt to influence the shareholder vote, and underscores why Board change is desperately needed. The Board
must immediately remedy its corporate governance failures and permit shareholders to participate in a fair and democratic election of
directors.&rdquo;</P>

<P STYLE="text-align: justify; font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="text-align: justify; font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0">On March 24, 2023, JANA <FONT STYLE="color: Black">announced</FONT> that
it will be nominating four highly qualified candidates to Freshpet&rsquo;s Board at the Company&rsquo;s 2023 Annual Meeting, scheduled
for July 25, 2023.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0">The full text of the letter follows.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0"><B>&nbsp;</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0">May 25, 2023</P>

<P STYLE="font: 1pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0"><FONT STYLE="text-transform: uppercase">&nbsp;</FONT></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0">Derek Zaba, Esq.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0">Sidley Austin LLP</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0">787 Seventh Avenue</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0">New York, New York 10019</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0 0 0 1in">Re:&#9;<U>Breaches of Fiduciary Duties by the Board of Directors
of Freshpet, Inc. </U></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0">Dear Derek:</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="text-align: justify; font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-indent: 0.5in">We are counsel to JANA Strategic Investments Benchmark
Master Fund, L.P. (&ldquo;JANA&rdquo;) and write concerning the recent announcement by Freshpet, Inc. (the &ldquo;<U>Company</U>&rdquo;)
of certain changes to its Board of Directors (the &ldquo;<U>Board</U>&rdquo;). By adopting those changes, which are plainly intended
to entrench the current Board in office and impede the free exercise of the stockholder franchise at the Company&rsquo;s 2023 annual
meeting (the &ldquo;<U>2023 Annual Meeting</U>&rdquo;), the Board has breached its fiduciary duties. JANA hereby demands that the Board
immediately remedy those breaches.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">&nbsp;</P>


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<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">As you are aware, JANA filed
a Schedule 13D on September 22, 2022 disclosing that it beneficially owned 4,568,787 shares of the Company&rsquo;s common stock (9.6%
of the outstanding shares) and intended to enter into discussions with the Company&rsquo;s Board and management team. JANA further disclosed
that it had entered into nomination agreements with four individuals pursuant to which those individuals had agreed to become members
of a slate of nominees and stand for election as directors of the Company in connection with a possible proxy solicitation in respect
of the Company&rsquo;s 2023 Annual Meeting.<FONT STYLE="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%"><SUP>1</SUP></FONT> On December 15, 2022,
JANA disclosed that it intended to solicit proxies at the 2023 Annual Meeting. Thus, for months the Board has been aware of JANA&rsquo;s
intent to contest the election of the four Class III directors up for election at the 2023 Annual Meeting. Indeed, as
you likely are aware, in the days leading up to the Board&rsquo;s recent actions, JANA and the Board engaged in discussions about appointing
individuals proposed by JANA to the Board.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">Pursuant to the Company&rsquo;s
Sixth Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, dated as of October 2, 2022 (the &ldquo;<U>Certificate of Incorporation</U>&rdquo;),
the Board is staggered into three classes of directors. Class III directors will stand for election at the 2023 Annual Meeting and Class
I and Class II directors will stand for election at the 2024 and 2025 annual meetings, respectively.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">On Wednesday, May 17, 2023, the
Company filed a Current Report on Form 8-K (the &ldquo;<U>Form 8-K</U>&rdquo;) announcing numerous changes to the size and composition
of the Board. First, the Company announced that the Board had voted, that same day, to (i) expand the size of the Board from ten to eleven
directors and (ii) appoint David B. Biegger as a director. Mr. Biegger is to be appointed to serve as a Class I director, meaning that
he will not be up for election until the 2024 annual meeting. Then, in the <I>same filing</I>, the Company announced that Charles Norris,
a Class III director who was up for re-election at this year&rsquo;s Annual Meeting, is retiring from the Board and not standing for re-election.
The Board then used Mr. Norris&rsquo;s retirement as a pretext to reduce the size of the Board back down to ten directors such that only
three seats would be up for election at the 2023 Annual Meeting.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">The Board&rsquo;s game of musical
chairs has had the effect of reducing the number of directors up for re-election at the Annual Meeting from <I>four to three</I>. Plainly,
that was the Board&rsquo;s intention. Indeed, had the Board simply wished to replace Mr. Norris with Mr. Biegger, it could have nominated
Mr. Biegger for election to the seat to be vacated by Mr. Norris. Instead, knowing that JANA intended to nominate four candidates, the
Board manipulated the corporate machinery by eliminating the Class III seat Mr. Norris will vacate and moving his replacement to Class
I.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">In addition, the Form 8-K and
the attached press release announced that the Board had moved the date of the Annual Meeting up by two months&mdash;from late September
or early October 2023, which would have been customary and in line with the Company&rsquo;s annual meeting schedule since at least 2015,
to July 25, 2023. As the Company admitted in the Form 8-K, such a change accelerated nomination deadlines under the Company&rsquo;s Amended
and Restated Bylaws (adopted as of October 4, 2022) (the &ldquo;<U>Bylaws</U>&rdquo;), thus dramatically shortening JANA&rsquo;s ability
to nominate from thirty days (between June 5, 2023 and July 5, 2023) to ten days, starting on May 17, 2023 and ending on May 27, 2023.
In fact, because May 27, 2023, the tenth day, falls on a Saturday, the Bylaws require that the nomination be submitted
by May 26, giving stockholders only nine days to submit nominations.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">_________________________</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify"><FONT STYLE="font-family: Times New Roman, Times, Serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%"><SUP>1 </SUP></FONT>In
particular, JANA disclosed that it entered into nomination agreements with Diane Dietz, James Lillie, and Timothy R. McLevish. JANA
later disclosed that it had also entered into a nomination agreement with Kurt T. Schmidt. In addition, JANA advised the Company
that Scott Ostfeld was a potential director candidate.</P>


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<P STYLE="font: 11pt Calibri, Helvetica, Sans-Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify"></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">Notably, the Board undertook those
actions not on a clear day but rather in the face of an impending proxy contest in which JANA has expressed its intention to nominate
four candidates for election to the Company&rsquo;s Board, and mere days after discussions with JANA had failed.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">It is well-settled that a board
of directors may not &ldquo;utilize the corporate machinery and the Delaware Law for the purpose of perpetuating itself in office&rdquo;
by &ldquo;obstructing the legitimate efforts of dissident stockholders in the exercise of their rights to undertake a proxy contest&rdquo;
against the incumbent board. <I>Schnell v. Chis-Craft Indus., Inc.</I>, 285 A.2d 437, 439 (Del. 1971); <I>see also Giuricich v. Emtrol
Corp.</I>, 449 A.2d 232, 239 (Del. 1982) (noting that &ldquo;careful judicial scrutiny will be given a situation in which the right to
vote for the election of successor directors has been <I>effectively frustrated</I> and denied&rdquo;). Yet that is precisely what the
Board has done. By effectively reducing the number of Board seats up for election at the 2023 Annual Meeting, the Board has obstructed
JANA&rsquo;s legitimate efforts as a Company stockholder to undertake a proxy contest.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">Where, as here, a board of directors
manipulates &ldquo;the size of its membership for the primary purpose of impeding and interfering with the effectiveness of a shareholder
vote in a contested election for directors,&rdquo; the board&rsquo;s action is invalid unless it can demonstrate both a &ldquo;compelling
justification&rdquo; for the action <I>and</I> that the action was a &ldquo;proportionate and reasonable&rdquo; defensive measure. <I>MM
Cos., Inc. v. Liquid Audio, Inc.</I>, 813 A.2d 1118, (Del. 2003) (invalidating board expansion undertaken &ldquo;for the primary purpose
of diminishing the influence of [insurgent&rsquo;s] two nominees on a five-member Board&rdquo;). The Board cannot make any such showing.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">Moreover, even assuming that
the Board was acting in good faith to reapportion directors across classes pursuant to the Certificate of Incorporation&rsquo;s requirement
that the classes be &ldquo;as nearly equal in size as is practicable,&rdquo;<FONT STYLE="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%"><SUP>2</SUP></FONT>
that justification is still insufficient to uphold the Board&rsquo;s action in the face of an impending proxy contest. <I>See Liquid
Audio</I>, 813 A.2d at 1129 (under <I>Blasius</I>, an &ldquo;incumbent board of directors&rsquo; good faith beliefs [are] not a proper
basis for interfering with the stockholder franchise in a contested election for successor directors&rdquo;).</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">Under settled Delaware precedent,
the Board&rsquo;s attempt to entrench itself and disenfranchise the Company&rsquo;s stockholders cannot stand. Accordingly, please confirm
by no later than Tuesday, May 30, 2023 at 5:00 p.m. EDT that the Company will expand the Board so that four seats are up for election
at the 2023 Annual Meeting as was the case before last week&rsquo;s Board action. Should the Board refuse to do so, JANA fully intends
to exercise any and all available means to remedy the Board&rsquo;s blatant breaches of fiduciary duties, including, without limitation,
potentially seeking an order compelling Mr. Biegger to stand for re-election at the Annual Meeting as a Class III director.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify"></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">_________________________</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify"><FONT STYLE="font-family: Times New Roman, Times, Serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%"><SUP>2
</SUP></FONT>Article III, Section 2(a) of the Certificate of Incorporation provides, in relevant part, that &ldquo;until the Corporation&rsquo;s
annual meeting of stockholders in 2025, the directors of the Corporation shall be divided into three classes as nearly equal in size
as is practicable, designated Class I, Class II and Class III.&rdquo;&nbsp;</P>


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<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">JANA reserves all rights and remedies
in connection with this matter and waives none.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">Sincerely,</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">Michael E. Swartz</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">Partner and Litigation Co-Chair</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">Schulte Roth &amp; Zabel LLP</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify"><B>About JANA Partners</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">JANA Partners was founded in 2001 by Barry Rosenstein.
JANA invests in undervalued public companies and engages with management teams and boards to unlock value for shareholders.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 1in">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify"><B>Contacts:</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">Media</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">Gasthalter &amp; Co.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">Jonathan Gasthalter/Nathaniel Garnick</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; color: blue">JANA@gasthalter.com</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">Investors</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; color: blue">IR@janapartners.com</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify"><B>Important Information</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 1in">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">JANA Partners LLC, JANA Partners Management, LP, JANA
Strategic Investments Benchmark Master Fund, L.P., and Barry Rosenstein (&ldquo;collectively JANA&rdquo;), and Scott Ostfeld, Diane Dietz,
James Lillie, Timothy R. McLevish, Kurt T. Schmidt, Dwyane Wade, Carsten Charles (CC) Sabathia, Jr. and Ginger Gorden (collectively, and
together with JANA, the &ldquo;Participants&rdquo;) intend to file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the &ldquo;SEC&rdquo;) a
definitive proxy statement and accompanying form of GREEN proxy to be used in connection with the solicitation of proxies from the stockholders
of Freshpet, Inc. (&ldquo;Freshpet&rdquo; or the &ldquo;Company&rdquo;) in connection with the Company&rsquo;s 2023 annual meeting of
stockholders (the &ldquo;2023 Annual Meeting&rdquo;). All stockholders of the Company are advised to read the definitive proxy statement
and other documents related to the solicitation of proxies, each in connection with the 2023 Annual Meeting, by the Participants when
they become available, as they will contain important information, including additional information related to the Participants. The definitive
proxy statement and an accompanying GREEN proxy card will be furnished to some or all of the Company&rsquo;s stockholders and will be,
along with other relevant documents, available at no charge on the SEC website at <FONT STYLE="color: blue">http://www.sec.gov/</FONT>.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">Information about the Participants and a description
of their direct or indirect interests by security holdings is contained in an exhibit to the Schedule 14A filed by the Participants with
the SEC on May 24, 2023. This document is available free of charge from the source indicated above.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">&nbsp;</P>


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<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0"><B>&nbsp;</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify"><B>Disclaimer</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 12pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0; text-align: justify">This material does not constitute an offer to sell
or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities described herein in any state to any person. In addition, the discussions
and opinions in this press release and the material contained herein are for general information only, and are not intended to provide
investment advice. All statements contained in this press release that are not clearly historical in nature or that necessarily depend
on future events are &ldquo;forward-looking statements,&rdquo; which are not guarantees of future performance or results, and the words
&ldquo;will,&rdquo; &ldquo;anticipate,&rdquo; &ldquo;believe,&rdquo; &ldquo;expect,&rdquo; &ldquo;potential,&rdquo; &ldquo;could,&rdquo;
&ldquo;opportunity,&rdquo; &ldquo;estimate,&rdquo; and similar expressions are generally intended to identify forward-looking statements.
The projected results and statements contained in this press release and the material contained herein that are not historical facts
are based on current expectations, speak only as of the date of this press release and involve risks that may cause the actual results
to be materially different. Certain information included in this material is based on data obtained from sources considered to be reliable.
No representation is made with respect to the accuracy or completeness of such data, and any analyses provided to assist the recipient
of this material in evaluating the matters described herein may be based on subjective assessments and assumptions and may use one among
alternative methodologies that produce different results. Accordingly, any analyses should also not be viewed as factual and also should
not be relied upon as an accurate prediction of future results. All figures are unaudited estimates and subject to revision without notice.
JANA disclaims any obligation to update the information herein and reserves the right to change any of its opinions expressed herein
at any time as it deems appropriate. Past performance is not indicative of future results.</P>


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