Harrisburg, PA — The National Frozen & Refrigerated Foods Association (NFRA) recently established the NFRA Refrigerated Food Hall of Fame to honor individuals for the contributions they have made, and the leadership they have provided, to the Refrigerated Food Industry. Three dedicated individuals: the late J.L. Kraft, founder of Kraft Foods; John Bottomley, Senior Director of Retail and Merchandising for Sargento Foods, Inc.; and Johnny L. Harris, Dairy Category Manager for Harris Teeter, Inc. will be the first recipients of this prestigious award.

 

 

In 1903, James Lewis Kraft began selling cheese to local retailers in Chicago. His business became so successful that several brothers joined him in 1909 and formed J.L. Kraft & Bros. Co. with J.L. Kraft as president. In 1928, the company bought the Phenix Corp., which added to its product line the famous Philadelphia Brand cream cheese. The businesses were merged as the Kraft-Phenix Cheese Corp. Kraft remained president until 1943, when he became chairman of the board. The name of the enterprise was changed to Kraft Foods Co. in 1945, and he remained chairman of the board until September 1951, when he became chairman emeritus. J.L. Kraft passed away in 1953. 

 

Kraft's early experience with cheese instilled within him the desire to improve, or change, certain qualities in cheese so that it would have longer store life and more uniform flavor. J.L. Kraft’s method of producing processed cheese was so revolutionary he was awarded four U.S. patents.

 

With the success of J.L. Kraft’s business enterprises and cheese inventions, Kraft Foods is the world’s second largest food company and is a leading manufacturer of popular cheese brands Philadelphia Cream Cheese, Kraft cheeses and Velveeta.

John Bottomley is Senior Director of Retail and Merchandising for Sargento Foods, Inc. John began his food career in 1970 bagging groceries at U-Save Supermarkets in Tampa.  After college he continued building his career in the food industry working for Betty Ann Foods selling pizza and salads, Rubbermaid where he held positions in sales management and marketing, and Lykes Pasco Orange Juice Company selling branded and private label juices. In November 2010, he will celebrate his 20^th year at Sargento having held various positions in sales as well as being the recipient of the prestigious Sargento Chairman’s Award and High Performance Team Award.

 

John served on the NFRA Board of Directors as Vice Chairman of Refrigerated for several years as the association expanded its membership to include refrigerated foods. He was the driving force behind the addition of refrigerated and spent countless hours helping to implement that change and build that segment of the membership. In 2007, John was the first refrigerated manufacturer to serve as Chairman of NFRA. He was inducted into the Honorable Order of Golden Penguins in 2003 and the Distinguished Order of Zerocrats in 2006.

Johnny L. Harris is Dairy Category Manager for Harris Teeter, Inc. Johnny began his career with the company in 1964 in York, South Carolina as a bag boy. In 1969 he left for military service in the US Army; returning to Harris Teeter in 1973. During his tenure he has worked in various store and corporate positions. In 1976, he was promoted to the position of Dairy Buyer/Merchandising and in September 2010 Johnny will celebrate 37 consecutive years of service with Harris Teeter.

 

In 2005, Johnny was elected Chairman of the Board of NFRA after serving as a Director for several years. Johnny was one of NFRA’s first Refrigerated Food Council members and was instrumental in boosting refrigerated membership and establishing NFRA’s first June Dairy Month promotion. He has been actively involved with the association for over thirty years and is a member of the Honorable Order of Golden Penguins and Distinguished Order of Zerocrats.

 

 

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