Greetings to everyone and all the best of this holiday season to you and yours. I regret to start off in this manner, but we were saddened to learn that Joe DeLorenzo passed away on November 12 from cancer at the age of 64. Joe was the director of produce merchandising and operations at Alpha 1 Marketing, the merchandising arm of Krasdale Foods based in White Plains, NY. He was a very well known individual in the industry, especially the produce industry. Joe was very active in the Eastern Produce Council, serving as vice president from 2001 to 2003, president from 2004 to 2009; he was inducted into the council’s Hall of Fame in 2012. I first met Joe when he was the director of produce at Food Circus Supermarkets and he always spoke of how he grew up in the industry. He was a third generation retailer after his grandfather started it all by owning a produce store in NYC and then his father owned several supermarkets in New Jersey. He is survived by his wife Goldie, father Anthony and four children and spouses and 10 grandchildren. May his soul rest in peace. And, our heartfelt condolences and sympathies also go out to the D’Agostino family and specifically Walter D’Agostino of Jetro/Restaurant Depot and his wife Mary Beth, on the death of their son Peter at the age of 20. Peter was a student at the University of Virginia and tragically took his own life in late November. Our thoughts, prayers and compassion are with the D’Agostino family.
I’m sure there were some happy consumers in the area when Snyder’s-Lance, owners of the Stella D’oro brand, announced the return of Lady Stella assortment cookies due to popular demand. To celebrate the comeback, Stella D’oro donated 100,000 cookies to families in need and gave away coupons to fans on National Cookie Day, (which is December 4 in case you didn’t know). Despite being off the shelves for more than five years, the company said devoted fans continue to rank Lady Stella among the top five most popular Stella D’oro cookies. “We wanted to surprise our consumers ahead of National Cookie Day with the exciting news that Lady Stella is back, thanks to their requests,” said Julie Balzer, Stella D’oro brand manager. “Social media has become a great tool for consumers to engage with us and shape the future of the brand. Lady Stella has a special place in their lives, and we are excited to honor that ritual. Our full gratitude goes out to our passionate brand loyalists and our inventive bakers.” Lady Stella cookies are currently available in the Northeast with a national rollout to follow. “Our hope is to make the holidays a little sweeter for families this year with our donation of Stella D’oro cookies,” said Balzer. “Feeding America is leading the fight against hunger, which is a cause that is near and dear to us.”
Speaking of generosity, kudos to online grocer Peapod by Stop & Shop for its $10,000 donation of groceries to the Recovery House of Worship in Brooklyn, NY. The church not only serves as an outreach for the community, but is also a food pantry. “Supporting meaningful organizations in the communities in which we live and work is a priority for Peapod” said Andrea Eldridge, senior VP of commercial east markets at Peapod. The donation will help serve more than 400 families during the holiday season. Peapod recently expanded its delivery service to encompass all five boroughs of New York City and will be serviced by its new state of the art facility in Jersey City, NJ.
Congratulations to Robert and Peter Unanue of Goya Foods on their recognition by Daytop/New Jersey at a lavish event at The Palace at Somerset Park. Daytop/New Jersey is a charitable organization that specializes in working with youths and adults who have substance abuse problems and the subsequent resulting behavioral problems associated with that disease. The group chose to honor the two brothers leading Goya’s success due to their philanthropic efforts on behalf of many charitable causes. Anyone looking for more info on Daytop can visit www.daytopnj.org.
After more than 50 years in the food business, Allan Becker has decided to give retirement a try.
Allan has been the national sales manager for Bakery on Main for the last nine years, and also has been running his own successful management firm, ALSID. Prior to these last nine years, he was well known in the industry from his time spent with several brokerage companies, (Ferolie and Pezrow most notably) and his expertise in natural and specialty products long before they became “in vogue.” Enjoy your retirement, Allan. Anyone wishing to reach out to him can email at [email protected] or call 201.327.2993.
We may be nearing the end of the calendar year, but that didn’t stop the Key Food machine from rolling on with the debut of a new Urban Market unit as well as another Key Food store banner. Sam Mujalli unveiled the second Urban Market banner in the Key Food fold, located in Long Island City. Slightly smaller than the first Urban Market in Williamsburg, Brooklyn (owned by Colin Xie and James Chung), it still incorporates all of the “industrial aesthetics” of the Urban Market look and definitely caters to the “hipster” crowd as well as the established residents in the growing waterfront neighborhood. It should be a very successful endeavor for the Mujalli family. Also, the newest Key Food opened on Fulton Avenue in Brooklyn, just a long jumpshot away from the new Barclay’s Center in early December and store owner Rocky Widdi couldn’t be happier. The 10,000 square foot offers a wide variety of products including an abundance of organic and natural fruits and vegetables and offers free delivery. Rocky said, “My family has owned this supermarket since 1967 and we are thrilled to be joining the Key Food family.”
It was good seeing old friend George Blauvelt of Hidden Villa Ranch (HVR) recently. George is a distinguished perishable food industry veteran who is now in the business of selling organic, cage-free, omega-3 and a whole lot of other “good for you” eggs. From his former days as EDDA president and running the national sales effort at Fromageries Bel, he has always been a voice in perishables. He was excited to announce that HVR’s brands of eggs ( Horizon Organic, The Country Hen and Nest Fresh to name a few) are now available to the entire Northeast market. HVR had been in a restrictive distribution agreement, but now that it has expired, they will be able to go fully market wide after the first of the New Year. Bill Weimer of O’Mara Sales & Marketing will be representing the line in the Northeast.
Finally, I want to extend my heartfelt greetings to all of you this Christmas and holiday season.
I hope that all of your wishes come true for you and your families and wish everyone prosperity, joy, success, health and wealth for the New Year. I hope the many friendships that I enjoy with you grow even further, and look forward to establishing new ones as well in the New Year. Warmest wishes for a Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas and a joyous New Year!