Greetings everyone and I hope you have been able to enjoy some of what summer has to offer us here in the great Northeast. I have certainly been happy to see many of you out at the various events and look forward to the autumn happenings coming up.
Congratulations to the team at Bozzuto’s for once again putting together quite possibly the finest supplier golf outing and trade show in the food industry. On the day prior to its annual Merchandising Marketplace trade show, Bozzuto’s holds an vendor appreciation golf outing at the beautiful Lake of Isles golf course at Foxwoods resort and casino. After a day on the links, the event continues with a Food Truck bonanza. All types of food from some of the best food trucks in the Connecticut area are offered for dinner and then the raffle begins (which raises funds for The Hometown Foundation). The raffle is easily one of the highlights of the day. I have said it before, but if you haven’t witnessed Steve Heggelke, Bozzuto’s EVP-merchandising, orchestrate the drawing and delivering of prizes (with a significant amount of help from nearly every Bozzuto’s associate) it really is a marvel to witness. Steve bested his previous record of delivering all prizes in just 12 minutes when he orchestrated handing out over 250 raffle prizes in under 11 minutes 45 seconds! Everyone in attendance had a terrific time and a big shout out to all of the Bozzuto’s staff!!
Several nice charitable endeavors occurred over the last few weeks and the first came from Goya Foods as it celebrated its annual “Goya Gives Day” by bringing together 20 organizations from local counties in New Jersey near their Jersey City headquarters to pack and distribute more than 100,000 pounds of food to their local communities. It was also a celebration of the 11th anniversary of Goya Gives where the spirit of the organization is to put an end to food insecurity. Bien hecho y Felicidades Goya!!
Next up on the kind-hearted meter was Stop & Shop, which together with Unilever’s Knorr brand, announced that its 32nd annual “Food for Friends” campaign raised more than $1.2 million for its 12 regional food bank partners to combat summer hunger in the communities they serve. Stop & Shop recognizes the importance of raising awareness around childhood hunger during the summer months, and while families are able to rely on free or reduced-priced meals for children during the school year, when school is out and children are at home, families have to buy more food, resulting in a rise in child hunger. According to Feeding America, the nation’s largest hunger relief network, 22 million kids across the United States rely on school meals. When schools close for the summer, school meal programs often close, too.
“This month-long campaign serves to renew hope for so many families that are currently struggling, allowing kids to enjoy a fun and healthy summer of play and time outdoors rather than worrying about where their next meal will come from,” said Gordon Reid, president of Stop & Shop. “This program also shows the value of communities coming together to support one another, and Stop & Shop’s steadfast commitment to helping our food bank partners provide nutritious food to families in need.”
Knorr also donated $10,000 and 5,000 rice and pasta sides to Feeding Westchester as part of its annual support of this campaign. “Unilever’s Knorr brand believes that wholesome, nutritious food should be accessible and affordable to all,” said Christina DiPietro, Unilever team lead. “We are proud to be Stop & Shop’s first manufacturer partner for their annual ‘Food For Friends’ campaign helping to raise over $1 million to benefit local food banks helping to fight food insecurity in our communities.”
And continuing with the charitable endeavors…the good folks at King Kullen marked the company’s
92nd anniversary by helping Long Island Cares – The Harry Chapin Food Bank during the month of August. The Long Island-based supermarket chain operates 27 King Kullen supermarkets and five Wild by Nature markets located throughout Nassau and Suffolk Counties. This month King Kullen employees have been helping to unpack and sort food donations, with the different food types then boxed into cartons which go to any of the 325 food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, and senior homes served by Long Island Cares.
“When I mentioned to colleagues that our 92nd anniversary was coming up, many said they wanted to get involved,” said Tracey Cullen, Esq., King Kullen VP-corporate strategy and initiatives and the great-granddaughter of King Kullen founder Michael Cullen. “King Kullen has a long history of supporting Long Island Cares. As a board member there, I’m very aware of the organization’s mission to serve Long Island’s hungry and food-insecure populations. To reflect our 92nd anniversary, we began with a goal of 92 employees volunteering. I’m proud to say we’ve surpassed that number.”
“King Kullen is passionate about feeding the hungry,” observed Long Island CEO Officer Paule T. Pachter. “They have raised tens of thousands of dollars for Long Island Cares over the years, are involved in our food drives, and serve within our organization. We are honored to count King Kullen as a loyal friend and appreciate their commitment this August and always.”
According to King Kullen president and COO Joseph W. Brown, a past board president of Long Island Cares, the current employee volunteer effort reflects a passion that has been with King Kullen right from the start. “Michael Cullen opened King Kullen during the darkest days of the Depression,” reflects Brown. “Throughout the 1930s, he made sure that King Kullen was donating to area soup kitchens and helping those in need. That tradition has stayed with King Kullen for more than nine decades and will remain with us now and in the future.” Good job by all involved.
And last but not least, Price Rite Marketplace teamed up with Feed the Children and event partners Conagra and Community Action Partnership of Providence County to distribute food, school supplies and essentials to 400 families in early August. The community event was part of the supermarket retailer’s 2022 “Feeding Minds & Bodies” campaign, in partnership with Feed the Children, which helps support food-insecure families in the communities where Price Rite Marketplace stores operate.
Each family, pre-identified by the Community Action Partnership of Providence County, received a 25-pound box of food; a 15-pound box of essentials including shampoo, conditioner, lotion and personal care items; a backpack full of school supplies and additional shelf-stable items.
“Our ‘Feeding Minds & Bodies’ program is one of the many ways Price Rite is committed to serving the communities in which our stores operate,” said Kevin McDonnell, president of Price Rite Marketplace. “Thanks to partners like Feed the Children we are able to provide critical fresh food and essentials to families in eight cities this season.” Fighting hunger is at the heart of Price Rite Marketplace’s charitable giving and, paired with Feed the Children’s vision to create a world where no child goes to bed hungry, the two created the ‘Feeding Minds & Bodies’ initiative, which is designed to help bring attention to and fight the serious issue of childhood hunger. Price Rite Marketplace and Feed the Children help families by providing food, personal care items and school supplies throughout the year. With one in six U.S. children living in a food insecure household, hunger remains a serious issue in many communities, especially during summer months. Since partnering with Feed the Children, Price Rite Marketplace has contributed nearly three million pounds of food, totaling more than $10 million in gift-in-kind donations, helping more than 165,000 people in 49 cities. Great work!
And congratulations to Al Spinazzola as he has joined RDD Associates as business manager for dairy. Al was the longtime director of dairy/deli at King Kullen Supermarkets before he jumped to the other side of the desk and went to Boar’s Head in 2018 as the director of business development for the region. Good luck, SpinMan!!
And we were sorry to learn that Theresa (Terry) Albanese passed away on August 15 at the age of 64. Many of you knew and remember Terry as a longtime executive admin at A&P for over 40 years. I encountered her when she was working with Dennis Hickey and then Pat Shiels over the years and when the Tea Company went down the drain she landed at Slattery Marketing as a marketing assistant. Terry also spent some time working and helping as an administrative assistant for the Friends of the Food Industry charitable organization. She is survived by her husband Daniel and daughter Danielle and son Michael and his wife Lauren. The family asks that any donations in her memory be made to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, www.mskcc.org. May her soul rest in eternal peace.
I look forward to seeing you out and about as our industry is wrapping up the summer and getting ready to close out the second half of the year. As always you can reach me at 201-250-2217 or [email protected].