The Refrigerated Foods Association recognized its new leaders at the Virtual Awards Ceremony on Feb. 26. Lauren Edmonds of St. Clair Foods is now president, following Josh Knott of Knott’s Foods’ term in office. 
Karen Bishop Carbone of Boston Salads & Prepared Foods Corp. will serve as VP and conference chair. Tom Davis of Lakeview Farms will continue his role as treasurer, and Mark Rosenfield of Reser’s Fine Foods will serve as the group’s secretary and chair of the communications committee.
Several board members were newly elected by the membership. Jeff Rhodes of Ventura Foods was elected to represent the associate members, joining Jennifer Shrader of Atlantic Coast Marketing and Lili Lawry of PSSI. Rhodes will be taking the place of David Horowitz of International Flavors & Fragrances, who completed his three-year term. Kevin Kuhlmann of Dierbergs Markets was elected to serve a three-year term, along with Chris Biba of Garden-Fresh Foods.
The RFA offers members many opportunities for involvement, including a robust index of committees. Committee chairs for the coming year, in addition to Rosenfield, include: Wendie DiMatteo Holsinger of ASK Foods, chair of the membership committee; Bill Schwartz of Schwartz Consulting and Janet Rowat Kraiss of The Suter Co., who co-chair the technical committee; Shrader, chair of the associates’ committee; and Timm Miller of PSSI, chair of the industry development committee.
The RFA’s Virtual Awards Ceremony honored several members who were particularly active and dedicated this past year. The Don Sircy Membership Award, named after the group’s founder and given each year to the association’s most active recruiter, was awarded to Chris Staudt of Chairmans Foods. The Outstanding Volunteer Award was given by Knott to Miller, of PSSI, in recognition of his exceptional dedication and advancement of the RFA’s Industry Development Committee.
The communications committee conducted a drawing as part of its Linked-In Campaign, and Emily Brogan of Rovema NA won a $100 gift card. The President’s Pin, which is awarded by the outgoing president to the one person who most contributed and supported him during his term, was awarded by Knott to George Bradford of Mrs. Stratton’s Salads. Bradford served the association as president from 2013-15, and currently serves on the RFA Board of Directors.
Interspersed among the awards and announcements was some entertainment, provided by RFA members Knott and John Bowles. The atmosphere was casual and festive, as the group celebrated the association’s resilience and triumph during a very challenging year. While regret was expressed about the cancellation of the in-person annual conference, which would have occurred that week, there was a lot of hope and excitement about future in-person events.
Both Knott and Edmonds expressed praise for the association, having risen to meet the challenges of this worldwide crisis. They noted how the RFA successfully found creative ways to bring people together and find solutions, with new resources and an even stronger commitment to the group’s shared vision.
