ASSOCIATIONS/ORGANIZATIONS:

American Association of Meat Processors, Elizabethtown, Pa.
Jay Wenther resigned as executive director, stating in a resignation letter that he “was presented with an opportunity to get back into the processing aspect of the meat industry, which was ultimately the reason that I pursued the academic curriculum I chose.” Former executive director Steve Krut agreed to return in a limited capacity to assist the board of directors through a formal search for the next executive director.

Food Marketing Institute, Arlington, Va.
Josh Katz was named director of food safety programs, responsible for the development and implementation of food safety initiatives, critical to the retail community. Katz’s most recent work includes earning his doctorate at University of California Davis in nutritional biology, specializing in human health risk assessment. During this time, he produced five publications, three as first author and two as co-author, investigating the impact of diet on consumer issues, such as food safety (pesticides, acrylamide, cyanide) and nutrition.

Intermodal Association of North America, Calverton, Md.
Barry Michaels, vice president of intermodal operations at Union Pacific Railroad Co., was elected chairman of the board of directors, succeeding David Manning, president of Tennessee Express, Inc., who remains a member of the board. Michaels previously served as chair in 2004 and 2005 and was honored in 2011 with the association's Silver Kingpin Award. The 13-member board also elected Phil Shook, director of Intermodal operations at C.H. Robinson Worldwide, as 2013 vice chairman and Don Aiken, vice president of intermodal operations at Schneider National, Inc., as treasurer. Shook has been an active board member for four years, serving on the association’s Scholarship and Bylaws Committees. Akin, in his second year on the board, is a member of the Policy and Intermodal Expo Planning Committees. He also chaired a board task force on pre-trip equipment inspections.

PROCESSORS/RETAILERS:

ConAgra Foods Lamb Weston, Eagle, Idaho
Greg Schlafer was named president of the frozen potato business, effective Feb. 25, responsible for running Lamb Weston’s global business, including the more than 2,500 restaurant, foodservice and retail customers in 120 countries. Schlafer most recently served as vice president of the bakeries and foodservice division for General Mills, where he was responsible for sales and profit delivery of all segment business units, including foodservice and convenience store channels, quick-serve restaurants, bakeries and milling.

Meijer, Grand Rapids, Mich.
J.K. Symancyk was appointed president, one year after he assumed the role of COO, where he was responsible for retail operations, supply chain, manufacturing, merchandising and marketing functions. As president, he will oversee all day-to-day business of the company. Symancyk will officially begin his new position on Feb. 3. In addition, Mark Murray was named co-CEO, where he will serve with current CEO Hank Meijer. In this position, Murray will serve as a partner in the development of future business strategy, and will serve as vice chairman of the board of directors.

La Terra Fina, Union City, Calif.
Packaged food veteran Peter Molloy was named president. Molloy maintains more than 30 years experience, notably as president and principal owner of the Farmhouse Foods Co., which he bought from Nestlé in 1991 and later sold to General Mills in 1999. Molloy also taught entrepreneurship classes at University of California’s Berkley’s Hass School of Business.

Sara Lee Foodservice, division of The Hillshire Brands Co., Chicago
Jeremy Lycan was named executive chef to the company’s foodservice culinary team, responsible for recipe development, tastings and multimedia communications, such as photo shoots and instructional videos. He will also play a major role in designing and facilitating training courses for hundreds of Sara Lee Foodservice customers and its broker chef network, covering subjects such as product applications and industry trends. Lycan previously served as executive chef of Niche, an award-winning fine-dining restaurant in Geneva, Ill., and executive chef of Heritage Prairie Farm in Elburn, Ill.

SUPPLIERS:

Harpak-ULMA Packaging, LLC, Taunton, Mass.
Tim Fox was named regional sales manager for the Midwest territory. Fox maintains more than 18 years of experience in equipment and material sales and service, with a focus on thermoform films, tray lids and vertical form-fill-seal. Previously, he’s held positions at Sealed Air/Cryovac, Hoegger Sales (US and Canada) and Reiser.

Provisur Technologies, Inc., Mokena, Ill.
Virgil Holloway was named account manager for the Southeast region, responsible for providing regional sales leadership for the company’s line of food processing equipment and aftermarket product. Holloway will also help coordinate all functional activities within the group, including sales, service, engineering and product development. Holloway maintains an extensive background in the meat and poultry processing industry, including management roles at Tyson, Inc. and OK Foods, Inc.

Ross Industries, Inc., Midland, Va.
Jamie Usrey was appointed president, effective immediately, assuming all management and leadership responsibilities and establishing the company’s strategic direction and product offerings. Usrey has 16 years of experience working within the Marel, Stork Poultry Processing organization, a producer of high-speed equipment for the poultry processing industry. In his most recent position, he was vice president of engineering and product development, responsible for the strategic direction of the company with respect to development of products for both the domestic and international markets.