ASSOCIATIONS/ORGANIZATIONS:
U.S. Apple Association (USApple), Vienna, Va.
Korenna Wilson joined as director of consumer health and media relations, effective Dec. 1. Wilson brings significant experience in promoting food, health, defense, economic development and science industries through both traditional media and social media channels. She also maintains expertise in high-profile crisis management initiatives. In her role, Wilson will be responsible for raising consumer awareness and knowledge of apples’ many benefits via proactive media relations programs as well as integrated social/digital campaigns. Wilson also will manage USApple’s health and nutrition research program, coordinating and releasing fresh, peer-reviewed studies on apples’ healthy attributes. Wilson will also oversee USApple’s crisis management program. Previously, she worked at multiple strategic communications and public relations firms, and served as press secretary for a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. 

United Fresh Produce Association, Washington, D.C.
Nathan Dorn joined as senior technology adviser to help build its education and tradeshow technology platform, supporting the new United FreshTEC Conference & Expo. Dorn maintains expertise in robotics, engineering, mechanical harvesting and other technology applications, working at Reiter Affiliated Cos., Gallo Family Vineyards and the Pepsi Bottling Group. In addition to his current consulting role, he is the CEO and co-founder of Food Origins, and was previously director of knowledge and innovation for Reiter Affiliated Cos., implementing worldwide organizational mechanization programs for fresh berry harvest and non-harvest activities. Dorn began his career as a U.S. Navy nuclear mechanic for the submarine fleet.

American Dairy Coalition (ADC), Green Bay, Wis.
The organization’s new governance team includes John Jacobs, president of ADC; Kari Kuehl, director of sales at Feed Components, as chairperson of executive advisory committee; Jeff Burton, president of Burton Strategy Group, as lobbyist; Dave Crass, Michael Best Industry group chair and agribusiness, food and beverage attorney, as general counsel; and founder Laurie Fischer taking on the role of chief executive officer. 
 
 

PROCESSORS/RETAILERS/DISTRIBUTORS:
Newman's Own Foundation, Westport, Conn.
John Everets was elected to the board of directors of Newman's Own Foundation. Everets is a partner at Arcturus Capital, a director of the Eastern Co. and a trustee of The Boston Athenaeum. He is also a member of the Newman's Own Advisory Board. From 2010-2015, he was the lead investor and chairman and CEO of The Bank of Maine, which merged into Camden National Corp. Prior to 2010, he was the chairman of Yorkshire Capital. From 1993-2004, he was chairman and CEO of HPSC, which was acquired by General Electric. Everets served as chief executive officer of GE.HPSC from 2004-2006.

Mission Produce, Oxnard, Calif.
Brent Scattini was named vice president of sales for North America, responsible for working with the domestic sales team in developing and implementing sales strategies in North America, managing client relationships, developing new business and overseeing day-to-day sales activities. Prior to joining Mission, Scattini served as vice president of sales and marketing for Gold Coast Packing, where he worked for the past six years. Prior to that, he was director of sales for Grimmway Farms for a decade.

Land O’ Frost, Inc., Munster, Ind.
Reggie Moore was appointed senior vice president of sales and marketing, tasked with overseeing development and implementation of strategies that support Land O’ Frost’s business and growth goals, including creating additional synergies between the sales and marketing functions and developing strategic growth initiatives. Moore brings significant expertise in product marketing for a range of global brands spanning the food, beverage and agricultural industries. He’s also worked with leading food companies to successfully launch numerous new and innovative products. Previously, he was vice president of sales and marketing at Cargill, served as the head of global strategy and marketing at Tate & Lyle, and was vice president and general manager at Hillshire Farm. Land O’Frost was recently named Refrigerated & Frozen Foods’ Processor to Watch in 2017.

C.A. Fortune, Chicago
Dwight Richmond was named vice president of the company’s natural channel, effective Jan. 2, 2017. Richmond maintains more than 25 years’ experience in the natural grocery industry in retail, distribution, wholesale and category management, including at the corporate level at Whole Foods Market and Earthfare.

Hollandia Produce, L.P., Charlotte, N.C.
The portfolio company of Mosaic Capital Partners, LLC named John Cochran as new chief executive officer, effective Nov. 14, taking over for founder and long-time CEO Pete Overgaag, who will continue with the company as executive vice president of innovation and corporate strategy. He previously served as chief executive officer of Ole Smoky Distillery and Pabst Brewing Co. In addition to his time as vice president of strategy at Roll International (now The Wonderful Cos.), Cochran also held the positions of president and COO at FIJI Water.

J&J Family of Farms, Loxahatchee, Fla.
Steven Condit was appointed director of business development, Western division. Condit brings over 17 years of produce experience. Most recently, he served as director of sales for Marengo Foods Co., and spent 16 years as national sales manager for Lipman Produce.

Melon 1, Brooklyn, N.Y.
Brandi Harrison joined as the new seed and plant operations manager, charged with overseeing the company’s own plant program for farms and growers, including seed orders, delivery to greenhouses and delivery of plants to each farm. Harrison has been working in the watermelon industry for four years. She came from Intergro, Inc., and was also a spokesperson for the Florida Watermelon Association in 2013 and the National Watermelon Association in 2014.

Market Fresh Produce, Nixa, Mo.
Christopher DeNovi was named senior sales and marketing director, responsible for planning and implementing sales and product development programs targeted toward existing and new markets and implementing strategic sales and marketing plans, goals and objectives. DeNovi has held key sales and marketing positions with various corporations, including as senior customer marketing manager for Levi Strauss & Co.; director of category marketing and merchandising at SEARS Holdings; vice president of sales and marketing for Dutch Valley Food Distributors, Inc.; and director of sales and marketing North America at CABKA, Inc.

Saputo Inc., Canada
Louis-Philippe Carrière, chief financial officer and secretary, announced his retirement, effective Aug. 1, 2017, after 30 years with the company. On such date, Maxime Therrien, currently the company's executive vice president - finance and administration, will be appointed chief financial Officer and secretary. Therrien has been with the company since 1996, and has held several senior management positions in finance and administration, both at the divisional and at the corporate level.

Seafood Harvesters of America, Washington, D.C.
Kevin Wheeler was hired as executive director. Previously, Wheeler served 10 years as vice president and director of public affairs at the Consortium for Ocean Leadership, where he was responsible for developing, advocating for and implementing ocean research priorities on behalf of more than 100 of the nation’s leading ocean research and educational institutions. In that role, he also served as primary liaison between the ocean science community and Congress, the executive branch, federal agencies and non-governmental organizations. He and his staff also led advocacy coalitions in support of budgets for federal agencies, including NSF, NOAA and DOD. Formerly, Wheeler was the director of federal relations for Brown University; worked on the Science Committee for the U.S. House of Representatives; served as the special assistant to the director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences; and also worked on Capitol Hill as press secretary and legislative assistant to former Congressman Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY).

Potatoes USA, Denver, Colo.
Lindsey Dodgen joined as assistant marketing manager, supporting the retail, market access, seed, reputation management and industry outreach programs. Dodgen brings a good deal of knowledge and agriculture experience through her internship at the USDA and her marketing research study abroad experience in South Africa.

Tyson Foods, Inc., Springdale, Ark.
Cheryl Miller, executive vice president and CFO of AutoNation, Inc., joined the board of directors,  effective Dec. 14. Miller maintains more than 20 years of corporate finance experience, including over 15 years in the automotive industry. Miller joined AutoNation in 2009 as treasurer and vice president of investor relations and was promoted to chief financial officer in 2014. She previously served as vice president and treasurer for JM Family Enterprises and ION Media Networks. Miller also previously held financial management jobs at Republic Industries, and its successor companies of AutoNation and Alamo/National car rental, as well as Circuit City Stores.

FOODSERVICE:
Chipotle Mexican Grill, Denver, Colo.
Founder Steve Ells will be the company’s sole chief executive officer after Monty Moran stepped down from the co-CEO role; Moran will retire from Chipotle in 2017. Ells, a classically trained chef, started Chipotle in 1993 with a small loan from his father. Ells served as chairman and CEO from 1993-2009 when he became co-CEO. As chairman and CEO, Ells will directly oversee restaurant operations, strategic initiatives and innovation projects.

Domino's Pizza, Ann Arbor, Mich.
Kevin Morris joined as executive vice president – general counsel, effective Jan. 3, 2017. Morris was most recently senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary for Equinox Holdings, Inc. and its various operating subsidiaries and affiliates. His extensive experience includes operating his own private legal practice; serving as vice president and associate general counsel at Global Hyatt Corporation; as senior international attorney and staff director at McDonald's Corp.; and as an attorney at DLA Piper (formerly Rudnick & Wolfe).

SUPPLIERS:
MULTIVAC, Inc., Kansas City, Mo.
Michael Johnson was named regional sales manager in the Western region, working closely with customers to identify potential sales opportunities while cultivating relationships with existing MULTIVAC customers, with a primary focus on the food industry in Alaska, Washington and Oregon. Johnson maintains 20 years of food industry experience, and spent the past five years working as a product sales manager at Air Clean Technologies/Air Right Products and Services. Prior to that, he spent four years as the Northwest project manager/account manager for Mettler Toledo, Inc.

ANIMART, LLC, Beaver Dam, Wis.
The provider of animal health products, supplies and services for dairy and livestock producers made a number of changes to its Midwest sales team. Josh Berg’s sales experience at Ecolab and Aspen Dairy Solutions gave him the opportunity to connect with producers. Ashley Scheel transitioned to outside sales. She was hired in April 2016 as inside sales manager. Jenna Alme joined ANIMART after moving from her family’s dairy farm in Stoughton, Wis. She currently serves as vice president of the Stoughton FFA Alumni chapter. Brad Ingram joined ANIMART in 2010. Tina Beu maintains a diverse background in animal health, with more than five years veterinary clinical experience and two years genetic and reproductive consulting experience in the AI industry. Beu will be taking over the recently vacated national account manager position, and will work in tandem with the territory manager in Indiana.

Food Safety Net Services (FSNS), San Antonio, Texas
Robert Brodnick joined as chief science officer, bringing diverse leadership experience, including forensic, clinical and R&D laboratory operations, program management and quality management. Brodnick will be responsible for providing leadership for a growing network of ISO 17025 accredited laboratories, managing microbiology and chemistry food safety testing, special investigations and auditing services for some of the world’s largest food suppliers. Prior to joining FSNS, Brodnick served nearly a decade on active duty and concluded his career as chief operating officer and chief science officer in the U.S. Army Forensic Toxicology Drug Testing Laboratory (FTDTL), Tripler Army Medical Center, where he led operations and strategic quality management systems. Previously, he helped the Department of Defense develop antimicrobial and wound healing medical therapeutics, advance the nation’s medical-chemical and biological threat defense capabilities, conduct combat casualty care research in Afghanistan and provide expert witness testimony and consultative services as a forensic toxicologist.

ESE, Inc., Marshfield, Wis.
Jim Mordell was hired as a project manager. Mordell maintains over 26 years of engineering experience in mechanical engineering analysis and design, technical management, project management and automation. He’s served in a variety of industries, including power generation, aircraft controls, turbo machinery OEM and aftermarket, packaging, food, paper and industrial automation. Previously, he served in various senior technical and management roles at MEC Turbo Solutions, Cobey, Inc., GE Oil & Gas and Dresser-Rand. He also worked as a design engineer at STOW Manufacturing and GE Aircraft Control Systems and as site manager at New York State Electric and Gas.  

tna, Dallas, Texas
Piet Ising was named new group product manager – conveying - general foods. A specialist in vibratory, heavy-duty distribution technology, Ising will work closely with tna’s global sales and engineering teams to further build the company’s expertise in the general foods sector, including the expansion of tna’s portfolio of full washdown solutions for the fresh and frozen industry. Ising maintains over 30 years of experience in the food processing industry, having worked for a number of leading equipment manufacturers as well as setting up his own businesses.
 
Restaurant Technologies, Minneapolis
Amy O'Neil was named vice president of operations, bringing 20 years of experience. Previously, she was senior vice president of operations for Caribou Coffee, and was instrumental in scaling the business to 500-plus outlets during her 16-year career. She also has experience as an entrepreneur, starting her own restaurant franchisee business, Phase Next Hospitality, with four national brands. Lori Wall was appointed vice president of human resources. Wall maintains more than 25 years of experience, having dealt with shared services and finance in her previous career at Cargill, Taylor Corp., Chubb Insurance and Northbrook Insurance. And, Bruce Atkinson was appointed vice president of information technology and chief information officer, brining expertise in innovative technology solutions to support safer, smarter kitchens by leveraging the Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data and cloud computing. Atkinson joined Restaurant Technologies in 2015.

Neogen Corp., Lansing, Mich.
A. Charles Fischer resigned as a member of the company's board of directors for health reasons, effective immediately. Fischer has been a member of the board of directors since 2006; his term expires at the company's annual meeting in 2018.

Port of Long Beach, Long Beach, Calif.
Managing director of communications Noelia Rodríguez departed the harbor department. She was recruited in 2015 to oversee the port's communications and government relations functions.
 

IN MEMORIUM: JASON GRIFFITH, REFRIGERATED FOODS ASSOCIATION

Jason Griffith, long-time member of the Refrigerated Foods Association, Marietta, Ga., passed away Dec. 14 after a long battle with cancer.  

Griffith spent the majority of his career as operation manager for Star Foods, Inc., Beachwood, Ohio, and ultimately became an owner of the company prior to the merger with Mrs. Stratton's Salads, Birmingham, Ala., in 2010. 

Griffith has been retired for the last several years.