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EXHIBIT 12
Dean Foods Company and Subsidiaries
Computation of Ratio of Earnings to Fixed Charges
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Fiscal Years Ending May
1997 1996 1995 1994 1993
Income (loss) before taxes $145,723 $(69,395) $136,388 $118,313 $114,759
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Fixed charges:
Interest expense 25,150 28,120 22,397 15,471 14,888
Debt issue costs 190 229 117 123 155
Portion of rentals (33%) 9,605 10,142 8,270 6,997 7,653
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Total fixed charges 34,945 38,491 30,784 22,591 22,696
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Earnings (loss) before taxes
and fixed charges $180,668 $(30,904) $167,172 $140,904 $137,455
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Ratio of earnings (loss)
to fixed charges 5.2 - (*) 5.4 6.2 6.1
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(*) The Fiscal 1996 Ratio of Earnings to Fixed Charges is less than one-to-one
due to the $150.0 million special charge included in "Income (Loss) before
Taxes", resulting in $69,395 fixed charge coverage deficiency.
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