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Chicken of the Sea Frozen Foods Announces Leadership Roles

Photo: Chicken of the Sea

Chicken of the Sea Frozen Foods has announced the appointment of three new leaders and a promotion within its commercial organization. The company is excited to welcome these industry experts who bring customer-centric expertise to ensure COSFF remains at the forefront of the ever-evolving seafood industry.

Tiffany Hicks has been hired as senior vice president, foodservice and wholesale. Hicks will lead the teams servicing broadline, national/multi-unit chains, industrial and wholesale customers. Before joining COSFF, she led foodservice at Bumble Bee Foods and Danone North America, along with a diverse background in general management and retail roles while at PepsiCo and Pepsi Bottling Group. Hicks is a Society of Fellow’s member at the prestigious Culinary Institute of America since 2022. Tiffany will report to Brenden Beck, executive vice president sales & marketing.

Joining COSFF as senior director consumer, Amanda Duran will oversee club channel activity as well as have key account responsibilities in the retail channel. Before joining COSFF, Duran served as chief revenue officer at Grass Fed Foods and Teton Waters Ranch. In this new role, Duran will also report to Beck.

Seafood veteran Sonia Merges has joined COSFF as sales manager in the foodservice/wholesale channel. Merges started her seafood career with Empress International, prior to the 2009 merger with COSFF. Most recently Merges served as an account manager at Crystal Cove Seafood. Merges will be working across the foodservice/wholesale channel and reporting to Hicks.

“We pride ourselves on our customer relationships and team – both have been crucial in positioning COSFF as a leader in the industry,” said Beck. “We are excited to welcome these talented professionals to further strengthen our organization, expertise and service.”

Additionally, Michael Richards has been promoted to senior vice president, commercial/category and has taken on expanded responsibilities overseeing activities in crab meat and finfish categories, as well as leading the retail channel team.

COSFF is at the forefront of the industry, supporting parent company Thai Union’s pioneering sustainability strategy and market-leading innovation. In addition to these leadership changes, the organization has invested in various sustainability initiatives, and built the most developed quality assurance network in the industry. To learn more, visit b2b.chickenofthesea.com.

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Smoke Lab Vodka Presents You’re in My Heart Cocktail

Smoke Lab Vodka is bringing the colors of passion and romance into its signature Valentine’s Day cocktail this year. This visually striking and delicious cocktail, created by Smoke Lab national mixologist and Industry expert, Paula Lukas @paulalukas27, is the perfect elixir to set the mood for any Feb. 14th celebration.

YOU’RE IN MY HEART

Ingredients:

1.5 oz. Smoke Lab Vodka
1 oz. Vermut Lustau Rose’ Vermouth
.5 oz. Portland Syrups Rose Cordial
3 oz. Mionetto Prosecco Rose’
1/4 tsp pink edible glitter
1 red rose petal – garnish

Method:

Combine Smoke Lab Vodka, vermouth, rose cordial and edible glitter in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a flute or coupe. Top with Prosecco Rose’ and garnish with a red rose petal.

Smoke Lab Vodka is crafted with pure Himalayan spring water and locally sourced superior-quality Basmati rice, selected for its distinctive crisp, pure flavor, and unique floral aromas. SMOKE LAB is India’s first homegrown luxury vodka that is becoming a favorite among U.S. consumers.

Lukas is a veteran of the New York City hospitality industry with over 30 years of experience. Known for her creative cocktails, Paula names the cocktails she develops for Smoke Lab after classic songs.

Smoke Lab Classic retails for a suggested price of $20/750ml

For more Smoke Lab Vodka cocktail recipes, visit smokelabofficial.com/cocktails

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Giant Food Pharmacy Launches CPR Certification Program

Giant Food, the leading greater Washington, D.C. regional grocery chain,has launched its CPR Certification Program, a new service offered to local businesses and organizations. The program, offering two-year certifications led by Giant Food’s certified pharmacists, will provide the skills necessary to respond to life-threatening cardiac emergencies. The program, which will offer convenient on-site training at your location, makes Giant the first community pharmacy to offer this type of service.

Program participants will learn to recognize and respond to cardiac emergencies and receive the most up-to-date guidelines for performing CPR, in accordance with recommendations from the American Heart Association. The course will teach the proper way to perform chest compressions and rescue breathing, and will cover the proper varying methods for adult, child and infant CPR plus AED training.

Survival rates triple when CPR is started within two minutes of an individual collapsing,however only 18 percent of Americans are up to date with CPR training, indicating a need for further education.

“We believe it’s critical to have the skills necessary to respond to life threatening emergencies,” said Paul Zvaleny, director of pharmacy operations at Giant Food. “With the launch of this program, we hope to reach and teach as many individuals and organizations in our communities as possible to share these important lifesaving skills, in a convenient and accessible way.  Cardiac arrest can happen at anytime, anywhere and learning how to perform CPR will improve the chances of survival.”

Giant’s CPR Certification Program is available for groups of six or more individuals starting at $69.99 per person. Contact the Giant CPR team at pharmacy@giantfood.com to learn more about developing a custom certification program for any organization. For more information on Giant Pharmacy services, please visit www.giantfood.com/pharmacy.

Since opening its first location over 87 years ago in Washington, D.C. in 1936, Giant has been an integral part of the communities and customers it serves. Giant is committed to being a Better Neighbor and has designated four main giving pillars that address local Food Insecurity, Military Support, Pediatric Cancer Research and Social Equality.

Giant is headquartered in Landover, Md.. and operates 165 supermarkets in VirginiaMarylandDelaware, and the District of Columbia with approximately 20,000 associates. Included within the 165 stores are 154 full-service pharmacies and 28 Starbucks locations. Giant fits all the ways today’s busy customers want to shop – whether in store or online. With 162 Giant Pickup locations and delivery options available in all of its markets, customers have even more convenient options right at their fingertips to get the best products and prices, whenever and however they choose. For more information on Giant Food, visit giantfood.com.

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