FMI Elects New Board Members

FMI's elections for its board of directors took place at its annual Midwinter Executive Conference in Marco Island, Fla.

FMI – The Food Industry Association has publicly revealed the results of the elections for the organization’s board of directors, which took place at its annual Midwinter Executive Conference in Marco Island, Fla. According to the Arlington Va.-based trade association, the new board members “bring a diverse range of expertise from across the food industry to effectively navigate the rapidly evolving business, economic and political landscape in the years ahead.”

Noted FMI President and CEO Leslie G. Sarasin, “FMI’s board of directors serves as the cornerstone of our mission to support and advance the food retail, wholesale and supplier sectors. The addition of these new directors strengthens our collective ability to meet the evolving needs of the industry and respond to the fast-paced changes that are transforming the way consumers shop for food. Together, we are embracing the potential for growth, collaboration and innovation.”

The directors are as follows:

Executive Committee Officers

Chairman Craig Boyan, H-E-B, San Antonio
President and CEO Leslie G. Sarasin, FMI, Arlington, Va.
Immediate Past Chairman Brian George, Alex Lee Inc., Hickory, N.C.
Vice Chairman Oscar Gonzalez, Northgate Gonzalez Market, Anaheim, Calif.

New Committee Chairs

Chairman, Audit Hank Meijer, Meijer Inc., Grand Rapids, Mich.
Chairman, Communications Deb Conklin, KeHE Distributors, Naperville, Ill.
Chairman, Finance Oscar Gonzalez, Northgate Gonzalez Market, Anaheim, Calif.
Chairman, Food Safety Colleen Wegman, Wegmans Food Markets Inc., Rochester, N.Y.
Chairman, Foundation Rick Keyes, Meijer Inc., Grand Rapids, Mich.
Chairman, Health and Well-being Jack Sinclair, Sprouts Farmers Market Inc., Phoenix
Chairman, Independent Operators Sean McMenamin, ShopRite McMenamin, Philadelphia
Chairman, Industry Relations JJ Fleeman, Ahold Delhaize USA, Salisbury, N.C.
Chairman, Product Supplier Terry Thomas, Flowers Foods, Thomasville, Ga.
Chairman, Public Affairs Chris Coborn, Coborn’s Inc., St. Cloud, Minn.
Chairman, Violence Preparedness: Steven Williams, PepsiCo Foods North America, Plano, Texas
Chairman, Wholesale: Sandy Douglas, UNFI, Providence, R.I.

New Executive Committee Directors

Wesley Eubanks, The Pictsweet Co., Bells, Tenn.
Dan Funk, Associated Wholesale Grocers Inc., Kansas City, Kan.
Jeremy Gosch, Hy-Vee Inc., West Des Moines, Iowa
Norman Mayne, Dorothy Lane Market Inc., Dayton, Ohio
Susan Morris, Albertsons Cos., Boise, Idaho
Kevin Murphy, Publix Super Markets Inc., Lakeland, Fla.
Steve Oakland, TreeHouse Foods Inc., Oak Brook, Ill.
Melody Richard, Walmart Inc., Bentonville, Ark.
Steve Smith, K-VA-T Food Stores Inc., Abingdon, Va.
Pam Stewart, The Coca-Cola Co., Atlanta
Mike Stigers, Wakefern Food Corp., Keasbey, N.J.
Mike Stone, Molly Stone’s Markets, Mill Valley, Calif.

Additional New Directors

Matt Gregory, Unilever, Englewood Cliffs, N.J.
Steve Heggelke, Bozzuto’s Inc., Cheshire, Conn.
Chuck Howell, McClatchy Retail Network, Sacramento, Calif.
Joe Kirby, Imperial Distributors Inc., Worcester, Mass.
Lucho Lopez-May, Mondelēz International, East Hanover, N.J.
Suzy Monford, Heritage Grocers Group LLC, Ontario, Calif.
Jamie Nelson, Pattison Food Group, Langley, British Columbia, Canada
Claire Peters, Amazon.com Inc., Seattle
Arturo Petrozza, Reckitt, Parsippany, N.J.
Ashley Roehm, Acosta, Jacksonville, Fla.
Herb Smith, Gallo, San Ramon, Calif.
Marty Thompson, Nestlé USA, Inc., Arlington, Va.

“FMI is incredibly grateful to our outgoing directors under the leadership of our immediate past chairman, Brian George, for guiding our industry through a difficult economic environment while seizing opportunities to better position our industry for success,” added Sarasin. “We look forward to continuing to build on these successes in the year ahead with incoming chairman Craig Boyan at the helm and the additional new directors who join an outstanding group of continuing board members.”

“FMI is committed to fostering a collaborative environment, engaging with stakeholders across the industry to enhance resilience and improving consumer access to nutritious food,” said Boylan. “These appointments will help ensure the organization is equipped to support its members in addressing the opportunities and challenges of today’s marketplace. I’m incredibly honored to have been selected to lead this dynamic group of industry executives to help steer FMI and the broader industry through an era of change and growth.”