[LOGO OF CENTRAL GARDEN & PET]
                                                              Corporate Office
                                              3697 Mt. Diablo Blvd., Suite 310
                                                           Lafayette, CA 94549
                                                                (925) 283-4573
                                                            Fax (925) 283-4984

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
_____________________

                                        Contacts: Gregory Reams
                                                  Central Garden & Pet
                                                  (925) 283-4573

                                                  Paul Verbinnen/Debbie Miller
                                                  Sard Verbinnen & Co.
                                                  (212) 687-8080

           CENTAL GARDEN & PET ANNOUNCES SHARE REPURCHASE PROGRAM
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        LAFAYETTE, CALIFORNIA, AUGUST 31, 1998 - Central Garden & Pet Company 
(NASDAQ:CENT), the nation's leading distributor of lawn and garden and pet 
supplies, announced today that the Company's Board of Directors has authorized 
the Company to spend up to $25 million to repurchase shares of its outstanding
common stock. The Company's stock closed at $14 1/8 today and the Company has 
approximately 31 million shares outstanding.

        Purchases would be made through brokers and dealers in the public 
market or privately negotiated transactions with nonaffiliated stockholders.

        "We are committed to our growth strategy, and because of our strong 
financial position, the share repurchase program we are announcing today should
not in any way inhibit our ability to execute our growth strategy or to 
aggressively pursue acquisition opportunities," said William E. Brown, 
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.

        Brown continued, "We believe the price of our stock is currently 
undervalued, making our stock an attractive investment opportunity."

        Central Garden & Pet Company is the leading national distributor of
lawn and garden and pet supply products. Central offers customers a wide array
of value-added services designed to increase the sales and profitability of
both manufacturers and retailers, including inventory management, advertising
and promotional programs, in-store service and display building and sales
program development. Central also offers lines of proprietary branded products
which include Pennington/R/, Kaytee/R/, TFH/R/, Zodiac/R/, and Four Paws/R/
pet products, Island/R/ aquariums, Matthews/R/ redwood products and Grant's/R/
ant control products.


                                   -more-


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        "Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform
Act of 1995: The statements contained in this release which are not historical
facts are forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and
uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those
set forth in or implied by forward-looking statements. These risks are
described in the Company's Securities and Exchange Commission filings.


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