Five notables from the food industry will make up the ninth class to be inducted into the Maryland Food Industry Hall of Fame. The 2011 inductees are: Bruce Bereano, Maryland lobbyist; Bob Burris, Burris Retail Logistics; William Hupfeldt, Esskay; Roy Marks, Shoppers/Food-A-Rama; and Jeff Metzger, Best-Met Publishing Co.
Bruce Bereano started working on vital food industry legislation for Safeway with Larry Johnson and now Greg TenEyck, and has represented and advocated for Safeway, Inc. for more than 25 years. He has been involved in a myriad of food, nutrition, health and business regulation issues and policy development.
Bob Burris will be inducted posthumously. He passed away last year at the age of 65 after a battle with cancer. He was the president and CEO of Burris Logistics in Milford for 25 years and began working for the family owned business when he was 12 years old. He will join his father, the late John Burris, as a member of the Hall.
William Hupfeledt, also being inducted posthumously, was the last member of his family to head the Esskay meatpacking business. He died in 2006. Hupfeldt was part of the fourth generation of his family to operate Schulderberg-Kurdle Co., a business created when two Baltimore meatpackers merged in 1919. He sold controlling interest of the company in 1985.
Roy Marks spent his entire career in the food industry, starting out at Giant Food before moving over to wholesaler P.A. & S. Small. He was instrumental in the growth of Food-A-Rama, which in the 1970s and 80s was Baltimore’s largest independent supermarket retailer. He concluded his career as a buyer and merchandising expert with Shoppers Food Warehouse.
Jeff Metzger, publisher of Food World and Food Trade News, has been covering the food industry in the Mid-Atlantic market since 1978 when he and his partner, Dick Bestany, purchased Food World. They later acquired Food Trade News. Bestany is also a member of the Hall.
The Maryland Food Dealers Council of the Maryland Retailers Association started the Hall of Fame in 2003. Rob Santoni Jr., chairman of the Food Dealers Council, says the 2011 class underscores the purpose of the Hall of Fame to honor those “who made a significant contribution to the food industry in Maryland.”
The 2011 induction ceremony and breakfast will be on November 3 at Martin’s West in Baltimore. The breakfast starts at 8:00 a.m. with the induction ceremony following. Food World’s Manos Retail Executive of the Year Award will also be presented. Nominations for the Manos award are currently being taken by Food World. See the ad in this issue for detail on how to nominate a candidate.
Many from the trade, both current and past, are expected to attend. Many will arrive before 8:00 a.m. and stay afterwards to enjoy the camaraderie, seeing old colleagues and renewing old friendships.