Flagship Food Group Appoints Butler CEO, Board Member
Flagship Food Group has appointed Adam Butler as chief executive officer and member of the company’s advisory board.
Prior to joining Flagship, Butler had a highly successful 17-year career at Kraft Heinz where he spearheaded the transformation for many of the brands in the U.S. as president for the convenient meals, frozen, coffee, cold beverages, and nuts categories. Most recently, Butler led the No. 2 Global Kraft Heinz market by accelerating topline, margin, market share, and employee engagement growth as the CEO of Kraft Heinz Canada.
Butler had senior leadership over brands including Kraft Mac & Cheese, Lunchables, Planters, Ore-Ida, Maxwell House, Kool-Aid and Bagel Bites, among others.
“We are so excited about Adam joining our company as we enter a new chapter of growth of our brands, products, and facilities,” said Rob Holland, Flagship Food Group’s executive chairman. “Having acquired five businesses and more than doubled our business in recent years, we’ve been carefully considering candidates for this position for quite some time. We met a number of outstanding people in the process; and Adam is someone with the unique combination of skill, experience, and passion that I know will make a great leader.”
Holland will remain chairman of the board and will continue to provide strategic leadership as the business develops into the future.
“I could not be more humbled and honored to join Rob and the Flagship group in the exciting journey ahead,” said Butler. “The market they serve is without question one of the most dynamic and influential drivers of food globally, and Flagship is well positioned to be an explosive and transformative leader in the space. I had the opportunity to spend time with a number of exciting and growing organizations looking for the right fit, and there is not a more impressive combination of brands, business models, culture and people out there.”
Based in Flagship Food Group’s Denver office, Butler will be charged with continuing the rapid growth the company has been driving in its brands in recent years, while also creating a strategy to bring unity and cohesion to the overall enterprise.
“Flagship has truly become one of the largest and most important players in the premium and Hispanic food space, and I’m excited to have attracted the talent that will leverage this position in the marketplace to drive accelerated growth, more solutions for our customers, and a broader reach to consumers across North America,” added Holland.
Flagship Food Group believes that its brands are among the fastest growing and most coveted in the industry; its 505 Southwestern and Young Guns brands are considered the largest and most historic brands in the Hatch Valley Green Chile space. Its Yucatan Guacamole brand was first-to-market in scaled retail guacamole nearly three decades ago and together with Cabo Fresh, creates one of the largest brand groups in the category.
Its La Tortilla Factory brand was an early innovator in better-for-you tortillas and today remains the largest, nationally distributed brand of tortillas that is specifically focused on organic and better-for-you. Its TJ Farms brand is one the fastest growing brands in its category of frozen snacks, sides, and potato products. Flagship operates five plants and warehouses across California, Kansas, New Mexico, and Mexico, and maintains sales, R&D, and support facilities in Colorado, California, Idaho, and Minnesota.
“Flagship brings a growing stable of premium brands with rich heritage and unparalleled quality to one of the fastest growing segments in food. Together, we’re going to forge a new frontier of flavor, and I am extremely fortunate to get the chance to work alongside such a passionate and talented group,” said Butler.
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Raybern’s Rebrands Packaging, Revamping Deli Sandwich Line
Raybern’s, a brand known for offering authentic deli-style Philly Cheesesteak sandwiches, kicks off a rebrand not only in package design, but in terms of quality, quantity and variety of sandwich ingredients. Beginning Q1, 2024, Raybern’s will introduce a revamp of its entire line, offering unique flavors and formats that are designed and created to thrill discerning sandwich lovers everywhere.
Five delicious Raybern’s varieties will be available in 2-ct packs to consumers at an SRP of $5.79, and sold in freezer cases everywhere.
Raybern’s introduces new and innovative recipes to their full line of mouthwateringly savory sandwiches. Notably, the Roast Beef & Cheddar sandwich is now complemented with a soft, poppy seed roll. In addition, Raybern’s is relaunching their Ham & Cheese sandwich, enhanced by a sweet deli roll.
The rest of the line has been upgraded with delectable meats, cheeses and sauces, including the Philly Cheesesteak, Chicken Bacon Ranch and Barbecue Pulled Pork. In this complete brand overhaul, Raybern’s is ensuring that frozen food consumers don’t have to compromise when they walk down the freezer aisle.
“Our new sandwich line up is a totally delicious innovation on sandwiches of the past,” shares Doug Hall, director of marketing at Raybern’s. “We have the bakery-soft bun covered, but we’ve completely amped up the meats, cheeses and sauces on our favorite frozen deli-style sandwiches! My personal favorite is the Roast Beef & Cheddar now on a fresh poppy seed roll.”
When it comes to sandwiches, Raybern’s has proven to be a brand that knows how to bring amazing flavor from the freezer to the microwave. Over 30 years ago, the founders Ray and Bernie envisioned sharing their love of New York-style deli sandwiches with the world. It took years to fully develop the Raybern’s bread recipe that cooks up “Bakery Soft” right from the microwave – as well as their signature Philly Cheesesteak recipe.
Today, Raybern’s is proud to make millions of sandwiches each year, including the best-selling Philly Cheesesteak in America, according to 2023 Nielsen Scan Data. Now, the brand introduces bigger and better sandwiches to continue giving consumers what they crave.
Raybern’s believes that the New York-style deli sandwich reigns supreme. Since 1978, they have been crafting incredibly delicious sandwiches with bakery-soft bread, slow-roasted meats and chef-created sauces. Now, consumers can enjoy authentic deli goodness at home or while on-the-go. It is Raybern’s mission to share its love of great sandwiches with as many people as possible and ensure that sandwich lovers don’t need to compromise in the freezer aisle.
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Giant Food, Shady Brook Farms Donate 11K Turkeys to Food Banks
Giant Food Representatives Donate Shady Brook Farms Holiday Turkeys to Capital Area Food Bank
Giant Food, the leading greater Washington, D.C. regional grocery chain, has announced its annual holiday turkey donations. In partnership with Shady Brook Farms, Giant Food will be donating 11,000 turkeys to its local Feeding America food banks partners as well as local organizations including Martha’s Table, Men Aiming Higher, THEARC: Building Bridges Across The River, Greater Washington Urban League and Greater Baltimore Urban League. Since 2011, Giant has donated 62,000 turkeys during Thanksgiving and this year, Shady Brook Farms is generously providing additional turkeys to make an even larger impact.
“At Giant, fighting food insecurity in the communities we serve is one of our top priorities,” said Dyani Hanrahan, vice president of marketing and community relations, Giant Food, and Maryland Food Bank board member. “We are proud to support over 20 community organizations this Thanksgiving in partnership with Shady Brook Farms to make sure our neighbors in need enjoy their holiday celebrations with family and loved ones.”
“At Shady Brook Farms, we take great responsibility in not only giving back during the critical holiday season, but also throughout the year to ensure families and local communities have access to delicious and nutritious meals,” said Hannah Kern, Shady Brook Farms marketing manager. “Partnering with a like-minded organization such as Giant Food to provide turkeys to those in need is incredibly meaningful and we’re beyond appreciative of their collaboration on impactful initiatives such as this.”
Additionally, Giant launched the annual “Lend a Hand for Hunger” campaign to benefit five area Feeding America food banks – Capital Area Food Bank, Maryland Food Bank, Food Bank of Delaware, Fredericksburg Regional Food Bank and Blue Ridge Area Food Bank – and other area nonprofits.
The campaign, running from Oct. 27 to Dec. 31 in all 164 Giant stores, offers customers an opportunity to support their neighbors by rounding up their change to the nearest dollar amount during checkout in-store or selecting a donation of $1, $3 or $5 during checkout in-store or online. Last year, through the generous support of associates and customers, over $1 million was raised to fight food insecurity.
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