PLANO, Texas, Jan. 18, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Frito-Lay North America's Lay's and Doritos brand teams today launched a Black History Month Art Contest that asks consumers to submit an original piece of art online for a chance to win $5,000 and a gallery showing in their local community. The winner will be chosen in part by consumer voting. In addition, Frito-Lay will donate $1 to the UNCF – United Negro College Fund – for each consumer vote received and for each piece of artwork entered. If consumers also submit the 9-digit code from a bag of Lay's potato chips or Doritos tortilla chips when voting, Frito-Lay will donate another $1 to UNCF, up to a maximum of $35,000.  Frito-Lay is guarantying a minimum donation to UNCF of $25,000.

"We are excited to enable artists to showcase their creativity in their local community," said Linda Bethea, director, marketing, Frito-Lay North America. "Our partnership with the UNCF will provide scholarships to help more artists and students reach their full potential."

The Lay's potato chips and Doritos brand tortilla chips Black History Month Art Contest begins today and runs through Feb. 28. Artists should go to www.celebratecommunityarts.com and upload a picture of an original piece of art created in any medium celebrating an African American achievement in Black History. Voting begins Feb. 1, with the top five fan favorites winning $1,000. Frito-Lay will choose and announce the grand prize winner on March 25.

Artists must be 18 years or older to enter the contest and upload artwork. Consumers must be 13 years or older to vote. For more information, visit www.celebratecommunityarts.com.

Frito-Lay North America is the $12 billion convenient foods business unit of PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP), which is headquartered in Purchase, NY.  In addition to Frito-Lay, PepsiCo business units include Pepsi-Cola, Quaker Foods, Gatorade and Tropicana. Learn more about Frito-Lay at the corporate website, http://www.fritolay.com/, the Snack Chat blog, http://www.snacks.com/ and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/fritolay.

PepsiCo offers the world's largest portfolio of billion-dollar food and beverage brands, including 18 different product lines that each generate more than $1 billion in annual retail sales.  Our main businesses – Frito-Lay, Quaker, Pepsi-Cola, Tropicana and Gatorade – also make hundreds of other nourishing, tasty foods and drinks that bring joy to our consumers in over 200 countries.  With more than $43 billion in 2008 revenues, PepsiCo employs 198,000 people who are united by our unique commitment to sustainable growth, called Performance with Purpose.

By dedicating ourselves to offering a broad array of choices for healthy, convenient and fun nourishment, reducing our environmental impact, and fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace culture, PepsiCo balances strong financial returns with giving back to our communities worldwide.  For more information, please visit www.pepsico.com.

SOURCE Frito-Lay North America