ASSOCIATIONS/ORGANIZATIONS:
New York Apple Association (NYAA), Fishers, N.Y.
Cynthia Haskins was named new president and CEO, succeeding Jim Allen, who retired Jan. 2 after a 20-year career with NYAA, including 16 years as president. Haskins maintains extensive experience in the produce industry, having worked with organizations such as The Oppenheimer Group, Washington Apple Commission, Northern Plains Potato Growers Association, Dole, Sunkist, Missouri Department of Agriculture, and most recently, Illinois Farm Bureau.

American Egg Board, Park Ridge, Ill.
New appointees and alternatives were named for the 2017-2018 term. North Atlantic states – John Puglisi, Howell, N.J., member; Elliot Gibber, New York, N.Y., alternate; and Lake Wagner, Bristol, Va., alternate. South Atlantic states – Scott Horton, Flowery Branch, Ga., member; and Robert Saverance, Lamar, S.C., alternate. East North Central states – Steve Herbruck, Grand Rapids, Mich., member; Thomas Hertzfeld II, Whitehouse, Ohio, member; Lisa Timmerman, Fort Recovery, Ohio, alternate; and Ronald Gross, Saint Henry, Ohio, alternate. West North Central states – Robert Krouse, North Manchester, Ind., member; Ben Thompson, Pearl City, Ill., member; Mindy Creighton Truex, Warsaw, Ind., alternate; and Mike Elliott, Eden Prairie, Minn., alternate. South Central states – Bob Johnson, Wayzata, Minn., member; and Bruce Dooyema, Sioux Center, Iowa, alternate. Western states – Roy Patterson, Lewistown, Texas, member; and David Elbel, College Station, Texas, alternate.

Sea Pact, Canada
Hamish Walker, director of purchasing at Seattle Fish Co., was elected chairman of the advisory council, taking over for former chairman Guy Dean, vice president and CSO at Albion Farms and Fisheries.

National Potato Promotion Board, Denver, Colo.
The board elected new members to serve 3-year terms beginning March 1. Newly appointed members representing producers are Jaclyn Green, Edison, Calif.; Sheldon Rockey, co-owner of Rockey Farms, Center, Colo.; Bryan Jones, Riverdale Potato Farm, Elkton, Fla.; Aaron Hepworth, owner of Firesand Inc. and chief operating officer of Triple Ace Inc., Burley, Idaho; LaVel Stoker, Burley, Idaho; Kevin Searle, general manager at GPOD, Shelley, Idaho; Jennifer Borowicz, Argyle, Minn.; James Allen, Alliance, Neb.; Tom Enander, co-founder of Enander Seed Farm, Grenora, N.D.; Martin Myers, general manager at Threemile Canyon Farms, Boardman, Ore.; Tim Gonzalez, Springlake, Texas; Kyle Barclay, secretary of Benton County Farm Bureau, Kennewick, Wash.; Melissa Bedlington-Kleindel, co-owner of Bedlington Farms, LLC, Lynden, Wash.; Travis Meacham, production manager of Friehe Farms and chairman of Washington Turfgrass Seed Commission, Moses Lake, Wash.; Shelley Olsen, Othello, Wash.; Chad Sullivan, Pasco, Wash.; Tyler Tschirky, Tschirky Farms, Pasco, Wash.; Melva Calloway, co-owner of Calloway Northwest LLC and operations supervisor at Amway's Trout Lake Farm, Quincy, Wash.; Erin Baginski, Antigo, Wis.; and Keith Wolter, third-generation farmer of Hyland Lakes Spuds, Antigo, Wis. The following producers re-appointed to the board are Kael Koompin, American Falls, Idaho; Thomas Kress, American Falls, Idaho; Jerry Tominaga, owner of Southwind Farms, Heyburn, Idaho; Dwight Little II, Newdale, Idaho; Bob Conger, part owner of High Country Potato, Rexburg, Idaho; Katie Floming, transportation manager at Neumiller Farms, Savanna, Ill.; Brandon Berce, partner at Berce Potato Co., Saint Agatha, Maine; Jay LaJoie, agricultural operations manager at LaJoie Growers, LLC, Van Buren, Maine; Casey Weldon Hoverson, operations manager at Hoverson Farms, Larimore, N.D.; William Sheldon, owner of Cash Gray Farms, Ray, N.D.; Kerry Anthony Heilig, Moses Lake, Wash.; Gerald Greenwalt, Quincy, Wash.; Brandon Schaapman, Quincy, Wash.; Mike Madsen, Tri-Cities, Wash.; Eric William Schroeder, assistant farm manager of Schroeder Bros. Farms., Antigo, Wis.; and Mark Finnessy, secretary of Okray Family Farms, Plover, Wis. Newly appointed importers are Edward Barnhill, Burlington, Mass.; and Vernon Thomas, Canada. Sanjiv Kakkar, president of Himalaya International Inc., Hamilton, N.J., was reappointed as an importer.

Intermodal Association of North America (IANA), Calverton, Md.
Adriene Bailey, chief strategy officer for Yusen Logistics (Americas) Inc., was appointed chairman for 2017. She formerly held the office of vice chairman. Prior to joining Yusen Logistics in 2011, Bailey held leadership positions at Pacer International as well as managerial posts at CSX Transportation, consulting firms and the Southern Pacific Railroad. She is currently serving as the chair of the Denver Transportation Institute.

Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (NEEA), Portland, Ore.
John Francisco, chief of energy resource at Inland Power and Light Co., was elected new board chair for 2017, succeeding Bob Stolarski, director, customer energy management for Puget Sound Energy. Ben Otto, energy associate at Idaho Conservation League, will serve as the public interest board representative. Michael Colgrove, executive director at Energy Trust of Oregon, also joined the board in 2017.

Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), Washington, D.C.
Abigail Ross Hopper was named the next president and CEO, bringing years of leadership and energy policy experience in solar industry. Hopper has been a director at the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management within the Department of Interior for the past two years, balancing complex issues to achieve sound federal energy policy.

International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA), Washington, D.C.
Heather Soubra was promoted to the newly created position of chief of staff, effective immediately, where she will manage the office of Michael Dykes, IDFA president and CEO, while working closely with the association’s leadership team to help implement the president’s 100-day plan for enhancing and expanding member services and collaborating with other stakeholders in the dairy industry. In her new role, Soubra will coordinate the implementation of strategic initiatives on behalf of Dykes and his leadership team to ensure that activities are streamlined within the association and reflect the priorities of the CEO. In addition, Soubra will continue to serve as the executive office liaison with the boards of directors, members, trade association executives and others to advance the image and efforts of IDFA. She also will handle special projects, starting with the creation of a summer internship program. Soubra joined IDFA in 2008, and was most recently director of industry relations and special projects, where she focused on strengthening the IDFA brand, increasing the visibility of the association’s subject matter experts and enhancing its marketing campaigns.

National Potato Council (NPC), Washington, D.C.
Dwayne Weyers, manager at Aspen Produce, LLC, was elected to serve as NPC’s 2017 president and to lead the council’s Executive Committee. Daniel Chin, Klamath Falls, Ore., was elected vice president of the grower and public relations committee, and Cully Easterday, agronomist at Easterday Farms, was named first vice president and vice president of the trade affairs committee. Other members approved include Larry Alsum, owner and CEO of Alsum Farms & Produce, Inc., as vice president of the finance and office procedures committee; Dominic LaJoie, owner-operator of LaJoie Growers, LLC, as vice president of the environmental affairs committee; and Britt Raybould, St. Anthony, Idaho, as the vice president of the legislative and government affairs committee. The 2016 president, Jim Tiede, will continue to serve on the executive committee as immediate past president.

PROCESSORS/RETAILERS/DISTRIBUTORS:
Clearwater Seafoods, Canada
Don Holdsworth was named vice president global marketing, tasked with leading the company's global marketing team, while working with all facets of the organization to develop and implement global marketing strategies. Holdsworth is a seasoned marketing executive with over 20 years of consumer packaged goods experience, having held various roles with Kraft Heinz. Most recently, he was head of the condiments and spreads group, working with a portfolio of market-leading brands, including Heinz ketchup, Kraft peanut butter and Renee's salad dressings, to name a few. He began his marketing career as an assistant product manager with Whitehall-Robins Inc.

Garden-Fresh Foods, Milwaukee, Wis.
Tom Sterle was hired as executive chef to develop new flavor profiles and food products reflecting the latest trends. Sterle maintains over 30 years of comprehensive culinary experience, including his most recent work as a chef and R&D director at Country Maid, Inc. Sterle also appeared on Food Network’s “Roady Chefs,” and served as a chef for numerous touring celebrities, including The Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, Frank Sinatra and President of the United States, George W. Bush. He also has worked for Charcoal Grill Restaurants, Champps Americana Restaurants and the Bradley Center.

Smart & Final Stores, Inc., Commerce, Calif.
Elaine Rubin was elected to the board of directors, effective Jan. 5. Rubin is the founder and president of Digital Prophets Network, and maintains more than 20 years of executive management and advisory experience in projecting, developing and managing ecommerce, digital, marketing, retail and direct-to-consumer businesses, ranging from leadership positions at 1800flowers.com, iVillage.com and amazon.com, and helping brands like Pier1 Imports and elf cosmetics develop their dotcom digital strategies. Previously, Rubin served as founder, chairman and board member of Shop.org and retail advisory board member for Hilco Global.

Sam’s Club, Bentonville, Ark.
CEO Roz Brewer is leaving the company, effective Feb. 1, to pursue other challenges. Brewer has been president and CEO of Sam’s Club for the past 10 years, making her the longest serving president and CEO in Sam’s Club history. She came to Walmart after a long career as a scientist and business leader, and progressed to lead the East business unit, which made up half of the Walmart U.S. operations. She was then promoted to chief executive officer of Sam’s Club, taking over the warehouse club channel. John Furner, chief merchandising officer, will be promoted to president and CEO. Furner started out as an hourly associate in 1993, and climbed the ladder of opportunity at Walmart, with roles as an assistant store manager, assistant buyer, store manager, district manager and buyer before being promoted to vice president in 2006. Since then, he has held leadership roles in operations, merchandising and sourcing. Furner also spent two years as chief merchandising and marketing officer for Walmart China.

The Oppenheimer Group, Newark, Del.
Eric Jones was tapped as senior sales representative, effective Dec. 21, 2016. Previously, Jones was domestic sales manager for Sun Pacific Marketing, where he’d started as a sales executive in April 2013. While at Sun Pacific, Jones developed season-long programs for citrus, grapes and kiwifruit. Jones also spent nearly a decade and a half at Giant Eagle, Inc., where he oversaw retail strategies for various product lines, ranging from apples and pears to cherries and stone fruit.

DuPont Nutrition & Health, Wilmington, Del.
Upon the heels of expanding its New Century, Kan., cheesemaking facility, Brian Bartholomew joined as senior applications specialist and James Musetti joined as an application technologist.

Meadow Foods, UK
John ("Jack") Anton, James Lambert and Lindsey Pownall were appointed to the board of directors. Anton currently serves as an operating director of Paine & Partners, which made a strategic investment in Meadow Foods in September 2016. Anton brings over 35 years of experience leading organizations and acting as an investor in the worldwide food, consumer products and specialty ingredients industries. From 2001-2004, he was a senior advisory director with Fremont Partners, where he was instrumental in the acquisition and divestiture of Specialty Brands Inc. Prior to Fremont, Anton was chairman, CEO and co-owner of Ghiradelli Chocolate Co., leading the acquisition of Ghiradelli in 1992. From 1983-1990, Anton served as chairman and co-owner of Carlin Foods Corp., and spent nearly 20 years in management and executive roles at Ralston Purina and Nabisco Brands Corp. Lambert currently serves as the chairman of the boards of Animalcare Group plc, Burton's Biscuit Co., Wagg Foods Ltd. and Whitman Howard, and is non-executive director of Story Homes. Previously, he served as CEO and chairman of R&R Ice Cream, where he completed a number of acquisitions, including the ice cream division of Allied Frozen Foods, Nestlé Ice Cream's UK business, Eskigel and YooMoo. Previously, he served in a number of roles for the predecessor company, Richmond Ice Cream, which he joined in 1987 as managing director. Before Richmond Ice Cream, Lambert was managing director and joint owner at Herdwise. Pownall is currently a non-executive director of Tesco PLC, and was most recently chief executive officer of Samworth Brothers, where she achieved significant top-line growth and strong returns, completed two acquisitions and recruited a new executive board. Pownall originally joined Samworth Brothers in 1995 as commercial manager of Walkers and Sons Ltd., and later served in a variety of roles, including sales director, marketing director and managing director across a number of businesses.

Land O'Lakes, Inc., Arden Hills, Mich.
Chris Roberts was appointed executive vice president and COO, dairy foods, effective Feb. 6, responsible for supply chain and operations, information technology and research and development divisions. Previously, Roberts was the president of Cargill’s value-added proteins division, where he was responsible for integrating two existing businesses, creating and implementing a compelling and sustainable growth strategy, deepening customer acumen and elevating employee engagement. Prior to that, he served as president of the Cargill Kitchens, and built his career in leadership roles at both PepsiCo and The Coca Cola Co.

Kroger Co., Cincinnati
Mark Sutton, chairman and CEO of International Paper, was elected to the board of directors. Prior to becoming CEO, he served as president and COO, responsible for running the company's global business. Sutton joined International Paper in 1984 as an electrical engineer. He held roles of increasing responsibility throughout his career, including mill manager, vice president of corrugated packaging operations across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, vice president of corporate strategic planning and senior vice president of several business units, including global supply chain, before being named CEO in 2014.Sutton is a member of The Business Council and the Business Roundtable. He also serves on the boards of the American Forest & Paper Association, the International Advisory Board of the Moscow School of Management – Skolkovo, Memphis Tomorrow and the New Memphis Institute.

Kellogg Co., Battle Creek, Mich.
Fareed Khan will join as chief financial officer and principal financial officer, effective Feb. 17, succeeding current CFO Ron Dissinger, who will remain with the company in 2017 to ensure an orderly transition. Khan has been chief financial officer of US Foods Holding Corp. since 2013, leading the company's initial public offering last year. Prior to US Foods, Khan served as senior vice president and CFO at United Stationers, and spent 12 years at USG Corp. in a variety of finance, business and leadership roles, including executive vice president of finance and strategy, president and CEO of USG building systems and executive vice president of sales and marketing.  Khan also spent several years at McKinsey & Co. as a management consultant in the United States and Europe.

American Seafoods Group, Seattle, Wash.
Mikel Durham will serve as chief executive officer, effective Jan. 16. Current CEO and chairman Bernt Bodal will continue as chairman. Durham maintains deep experience in the foodservice and consumer products industries, specifically with substantial product innovation and channel development expertise. She is an independent board member of Tyson Foods and previously served as the global growth officer of PepsiCo’s North America Foodservice business, president of Burger King North America, president of global supply chain for Cadbury Schweppes, managing director of Guinness Venture Markets, chief commercial officer of CSM Bakery Solutions and general manager of Yum! Southern Europe.

FOODSERVICE:
RAVE Restaurant Group, Inc., Dallas, Texas
Scott Crane was appointed chief executive officer, effective Jan. 9, succeeding interim CEO Clinton Coleman, who will remain in his role as a member of the board, where he has served since 2007. Crane most recently served as president and CEO of Smashburger, where he led its development from a 2-unit start-up concept in 2007 to a global company with more than 330 corporate and franchise locations operating in 35 states and seven countries. Previously, Crane was at Fugate Enterprises, Inc., where he was responsible for the operation of 210 Pizza Hut units, in addition to Taco Bell, Wing Street, Sonic and Blockbuster Video locations.

Logan’s Roadhouse, Nashville, Tenn.
Thirty-five-year industry veteran and restaurant turnaround executive Hazem Ouf was named partner and CEO. Ouf began his career in London with the Rank Organization. Over the past 35 years, he has directed, managed and developed a wide range of full-service restaurant concepts, including American Blue Ribbon Holdings, owner of O’Charley’s, 99 Restaurant and Pub, Village Inn, Bakers Square and Legendary Baking, from March 2009 to September 2016. There, he grew the company’s revenue through internal growth and acquisitions.

SUPPLIERS:
Winpak Ltd., Canada
Larry Warelis will become vice president and CFO, taking over for Ken Kuchma, vice president and CFO, who announced his intent to retire, effective May 1, after 28 years with the company in various senior administration roles. Warelis has been with Winpak since 1997 as the director of corporate accounting and treasury. 

Food Safety Net Services (FSNS), San Antonio, Texas
Aaron Pleitner joined as research scientist, charged with managing in-plant and in-lab process validation for CCP verification, test method validation, shelf-life testing, challenge studies and antimicrobial efficacy studies. Pleitner brings nearly 10 years in food safety experience, including extensive quality assurance, process validation and laboratory experience. Previously, he assisted Nestle Nutrition with its process validation, HACCP coordination and aseptic process verification, and worked in quality and regulatory operations for General Mills.

The Allen Lund Co. (ALC), La Cañada Flintridge, Calif.
Dave Comber was promoted to manager. Previously, he was assistant manager with ALC for three years, and before that, gave 12 years of service to Northern Freight Services and Schneider National, Inc. Ben Tinker was promoted to assistant manager. Tinker has been with ALC for three years, starting as a business development specialist. He maintains 10 years of industry experience coming from Northern Freight, Stoughton Logistics and C.H. Robinson. Mike Meyer was promoted to operations manager. Previously, he was a transportation broker for ALC for the past three years. He maintains six years of combined experience from ALC, Northern Freight and Panther Logistics, LLC.

PTV Group, Germany
Dr. Jaume Barceló was named a full-time strategic adviser. Barceló was previously co-founder and developer of Aimsun software and emeritus professor at UPC Barcelona, Spain.

Airmaster, Clarklake, Mich.
Gregory Helbling was promoted to vice president of sales and marketing, responsible for leading the company’s sales strategy across all sales channels, including industrial, electrical and HVAC. Helbling maintains more than 35 years of industry experience. Previously, he was director of sales and marketing for Airmaster, vice president of sales and marketing for Wright Tool Co. and director of product and channel management at Bolttech Mannings Inc. Keith Simon was appointed senior product development manager, responsible for leveraging innovative products from Maico, Airmaster’s parent company, for the North American market. With more than 30 years of experience and immense technical expertise, Simon was previously vice president of sales and marketing for the American fan division of the Fläkt Woods Group, and vice president of sales and engineering for Industrial Fan Inc. And, Jerry Vojtush was hired as inside sales manager, responsible for managing customer relations and improving the company’s sales volume through improved internal and external communication, sales tactics and training. Vojtush spent the past four years as a product manager at Airmaster. In his 33 years of ventilation industry experience, Vojtush also held positions as a manufacturer’s representative, inside sales representative and a sales and technical support specialist.

Globe Food Equipment Co., Dayton, Ohio
Ryan Feasel was named regional sales manager, providing support to sales reps in the eastern region of the United States. Feasel maintains over six years of experience in the foodservice industry, primarily in business development with Steak N Shake, and six years of sales management with F. McConnell and Sons.

AFFLINK, Tuscaloosa, Ala.
John Soldo was named business development manager, industrial West, responsible for working with members and suppliers in the West to drive new national account business via the ELEVATE process. Soldo most recently worked at Victory Packaging, where he led the protective packaging market segment and cold chain management product lines. Bringing more than 30 years of industrial packaging experience, Soldo has also worked for Sealed Air, Henkel and the Wilpack Group internationally throughout Australia. Amy MacDonald was appointed business development manager, industrial East, working with members and suppliers primarily covering the Eastern United States to drive new business through the ELEVATE process. MacDonald maintains a strong familiarity of both AFFLINK and its distribution partners. Most recently, she served as the vice president and general manager for SupplyOne, Inc., and also worked with xpedx, Corporate Express and the Pitney Bowes organizations. Tim McCord was named director of commercial sales, West. McCord has been vice president and director of sales for Empire Paper Co. for nearly 20 years, driving account acquisition in the BSC, education and commercial sectors and leading the training and management of 26 sales professionals across five states. Prior to that, he was manufacturer sales rep for Bodan Sales Co., and also created and managed his own retail business.