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                                                                    Exhibit 99.2

                                Contact: David T. Lanzillo
                                                  Corning Consumer Products
                                                  (607) 377-8259
                                                  lanzillodt@ccpci.com

                                                  Anthony P. Deasey
                                                  Chief Financial Officer
                                                  Corning Consumer Products
                                                  (607) 377-8005

                                                  Don DeNovellis
                                                  Chief Financial Officer
                                                  EKCO Group, Inc.
                                                  (603) 888-1212


          CORNING CONSUMER PRODUCTS COMPANY TO ACQUIRE EKCO GROUP, INC.

         Elmira, NY, and Nashua, NH, August 5, 1999 - Corning Consumer Products
Company and EKCO Group, Inc. (AMEX:EKO) today announced the signing of a
definitive merger agreement for CCPC Acquisition Corp. (the parent of Corning
Consumer Products) to acquire EKCO Group for $7.00 per share in cash in a
transaction valued at approximately $300 million, including the assumption of
debt. The per-share price represents a 56 percent premium over EKCO Group's
closing price of $4.50 per share in American Stock Exchange trading on August 4,
1999.
         The transaction provides for an all-cash tender offer by CCPC
Acquisition for all of the EKCO Group shares outstanding to commence within five
business days. The agreement has been approved by the Board of Directors of EKCO
Group. The tender offer is expected to close by September 10, unless extended,
and is subject to the valid tender of at least a majority of the outstanding
EKCO Group shares on a fully diluted basis, and to customary government filings
and other customary conditions.

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          "EKCO Group's metal bakeware brands, which include EKCO(R), Baker's
Secret(R) and FARBERWARE(R) products, hold the number one position in this
category," said Peter F. Campanella, President and Chief Executive Officer of
Corning Consumer Products, "just as we are the leader in glass and ceramic
ovenware and bakeware with Corningware(R) and Pyrex(R) brands. We are delighted
to be adding the EKCO(R) kitchen tool line as well, which is an excellent
complement to the premium OXO(R) line of kitchen tools that we will be gaining
as part of our pending General Housewares acquisition announced just three days
ago.
         "Corning Consumer Products will soon be offering consumers a broader
range of branded kitchen housewares products," Campanella continued, "and we
will be selling through a wider range of houseware retailers as well."

         Malcolm L. Sherman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of EKCO Group,
added, "Through this transaction, we are pleased to be delivering significant
value to our shareholders. We believe that the prospects for the combined
businesses are exceptional. Corning Consumer Products has an excellent
reputation for producing high quality products with a strong portfolio of brand
names, which complements EKCO Group's family of powerful brands that are some of
the most widely recognized household names in the country. We are confident that
an organization of Corning Consumer's caliber will continue to develop the
brands we have worked so hard to build, as well as provide our employees with
significant opportunities for professional advancement."

         Corning Consumer Products Company has been an affiliate of Borden, Inc.
and a member of the Borden Family of Companies since April 1998. Each member of
the Borden Family is privately owned by its own management and by affiliates of
the investment firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. Borden, Inc. provides
significant management and financial control across the family.

         "When Corning Consumer Products joined the Borden Family of Companies,
I stated that the vision for Corning Consumer included building a broader
business in kitchen housewares," said C. Robert Kidder, Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer of Borden, Inc. "The acquisitions of EKCO Group and

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General Housewares are key steps in that direction and will enhance Corning
Consumer's ability to serve both consumers and retailers."

         The tender offer for EKCO Group shares will be made only through
definitive tender offer documents, which will be filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission and mailed to the stockholders of EKCO Group. Following the
completion of the tender offer, it is contemplated that the holders of any
then-outstanding common shares will receive, in a second-step merger, the same
$7.00 per share cash consideration as holders will receive in the tender offer.
EKCO Group was advised in the transaction by Lehman Brothers and Corning
Consumer and Borden were advised by Goldman Sachs.

         EKCO Group, Inc. is a leading manufacturer and marketer of branded
consumer products that are broadly marketed primarily through major mass
merchant, supermarket, home, hardware, specialty and department stores. The
Company's products include household items such as bakeware, kitchenware,
pantryware, brooms, brushes and mops, as well as nonpoisonous and low-toxic
household pest control products and small animal care and control products. In
addition, the Company also markets pet supplies and accessories, such as ropes,
chews, collars and leashes, through its subsidiary, Aspen Pet Products. EKCO
Group, headquartered in Nashua, New Hampshire, posted sales of $328 million in
fiscal 1998 and employs approximately 1,150 people.

         Corning Consumer Products Company, headquartered in Elmira, N.Y.,
markets housewares products under the Corningware(R), Corelle(R), Revere(R),
Pyrex(R) and Visions(R) brand names. The company posted sales of $533 million in
1998, employs approximately 3,000 people and has facilities in Asia, Australia,
Latin America and the United States.

         On August 2, Corning Consumer Products announced a definitive merger
agreement providing for the acquisition of General Housewares Corp., a leading
producer of kitchen and other household products, in a $145 million transaction.

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EXCEPT FOR THE HISTORICAL INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN, THE MATTERS DISCUSSED IN
THIS PRESS RELEASE, [INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE COMPANY'S PROJECTIONS OF
FINANCIAL RESULTS FOR THE SECOND HALF OF FISCAL 1999 AND FOR THE FULL YEAR], ARE
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS MADE PURSUANT TO THE SAFE HARBOR PROVISIONS OF
SECTION 27A OF THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933 AND SECTION 21E OF THE SECURITIES
EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934. SUCH STATEMENTS, [INCLUDING THE COMPANY'S CURRENT
EXPECTATIONS REGARDING FUTURE FINANCIAL RESULTS], ARE BASED ON MANAGEMENT'S
CURRENT EXPECTATIONS AND ARE SUBJECT TO A NUMBER OF FACTORS AND UNCERTAINTIES
WHICH COULD CAUSE ACTUAL RESULTS TO DIFFER MATERIALLY FROM THOSE DESCRIBED IN
THE FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS. SUCH FACTORS AND UNCERTAINTIES INCLUDE, BUT ARE
NOT LIMITED TO: THE IMPACT OF THE LEVEL OF THE COMPANY'S INDEBTEDNESS;
RESTRICTIVE COVENANTS CONTAINED IN THE COMPANY'S VARIOUS DEBT DOCUMENTS; GENERAL
ECONOMIC CONDITIONS AND CONDITIONS IN THE RETAIL ENVIRONMENT; THE COMPANY'S
DEPENDENCE ON A FEW LARGE CUSTOMERS; PRICE FLUCTUATIONS IN THE RAW MATERIALS
USED BY THE COMPANY; COMPETITIVE CONDITIONS IN THE COMPANY'S MARKETS; THE TIMELY
INTRODUCTION OF NEW PRODUCTS AND COSTS ASSOCIATED THEREWITH; THE IMPACT OF
COMPETITIVE PRODUCTS AND PRICING; CERTAIN ASSUMPTIONS RELATED TO CONSUMER
PURCHASING PATTERNS; THE SEASONAL NATURE OF THE COMPANY'S BUSINESS; THE TIMELY
IMPLEMENTATION BY THE COMPANY OF ITS YEAR 2000 PROJECT, THE FUTURE COSTS
ASSOCIATED WITH ITS YEAR 2000 PROJECT AND THE TIMELY CONVERSION BY KEY VENDORS,
CUSTOMERS, SUPPLIERS AND OTHER THIRD PARTIES ON WHICH THE COMPANY'S BUSINESS
RELIES; AND THE IMPACT OF FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL ENVIRONMENTAL REQUIREMENTS
(INCLUDING THE IMPACT OF CURRENT OR FUTURE ENVIRONMENTAL CLAIMS AGAINST THE
COMPANY). AS A RESULT, THE COMPANY'S RESULTS MAY FLUCTUATE. ADDITIONAL
INFORMATION CONCERNING RISK FACTORS THAT COULD CAUSE ACTUAL RESULTS TO DIFFER
MATERIALLY FROM THOSE PROJECTED IN THE FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS IS CONTAINED
IN THE COMPANY'S FILINGS WITH THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION. THESE
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS REPRESENT THE COMPANY'S BEST ESTIMATES AS OF THE DATE
OF THIS PRESS RELEASE. THE COMPANY ASSUMES NO OBLIGATION TO UPDATE SUCH
ESTIMATES EXCEPT AS REQUIRED BY THE RULES AND REGULATIONS OF THE SECURITIES AND
EXCHANGE COMMISSION. FARBERWARE(R) IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF FARBERWARE,
INC.(R).



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FOR MORE INFORMATION REGARDING EKCO GROUP, PLEASE CONTACT:
MORGEN-WALKE ASSOCIATES
212-850-5600

INVESTOR CONTACT:                                    PRESS RELATIONS:
STACEY BIBI, CAROLINE EUSTACE                        MICHAEL MCMULLAN/STACY ROTH