Last Chance to Register for
the Retail Executive Conference
Over 130 industry executives have already registered for the Retail Executive Conference April 24-26 at the Tempe Mission Palms Hotel in Tempe AZ. The Conference features top industry speakers on many hot issues including RFID, Channel Blurring, Trade Promotion Best Practices, New Product Introductions and more! The Conference is limited to 150 attendees. Time is running out to register. Click here to see the complete agenda and to register.

June Dairy Month Idea Book and POS Catalog is Now Available Online
Plan now to merchandise the refrigerated department for June Dairy Month and compete for your chance to win a Golden Penguin Award! NFRA has many specially-designed point of sale items available to help you create excitement in the aisles. Place your order early to allow time for delivery. Click here to see the June Idea Book and POS Catalog and the Golden Penguin rules and entry form.

Ice Cream & Novelties Pair up
with Ice Age in June/July
Begin planning for the upcoming June/July Family Freezer Pleasers Ice Cream & Novelties Promotion. This merchandising event for the key ice cream and novelties categories will tie-in with the exciting movie release of Ice Age The Meltdown. The promotion includes a Retail Display Contest and $50,000 Consumer Instant Win Game. Information on how to participate in this cool, summer event will be arriving soon in the mail or click here for all the details

Convention Registration is Open
It’s never too early to register for the 2006 National Frozen & Refrigerated Foods Convention to be held October 7-10 in Orlando, FL. The Convention brings together the leading frozen and refrigerated food companies from all segments of the industry to meet face-to-face -- to make contacts and conduct business. You can now find the detailed agenda and registration form online. Click here for more on the Convention.

Scholarship Program Raises Funds
for Over 750 Students
The Frozen Food Industry Memorial Scholarship Foundation has raised $55,925 in contributions for 2005. This increases to $1,061,760 the total financial aid which the program has provided to more than 750 students seeking careers in the food industry. Click here for the complete story.

NFRA Goes to Ice Age The Meltdown Hollywood Premier
Frozen foods got an extra promotional boost in March as the result of an attractive partnership between NFRA and Twentieth Century Fox, and the March 31 movie release of Ice Age The Meltdown. NFRA attended the March 19 movie premier at Mann’s Grauman Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. “There is no doubt the premier was an exciting event to attend,” commented Nevin Montgomery, NFRA President and CEO. “But even more significant and enjoyable for NFRA was the satisfaction gained in seeing our industry as a significant element in the movie’s release to the public.” Click here for more on the premier.

Enter March Golden Penguin Competition
Now that the 2006 March National Frozen Food Month promotion has come to a close, it’s time to begin compiling your results for entry into the Golden Penguin Awards Competition. Golden Penguin winners will be nationally recognized at a special Awards Reception and Banquet at the National Frozen & Refrigerated Foods Convention in Orlando, FL. Entries must be received at the NFRA office no later than May 16, 2006. Click here to download the March Golden Penguin rules brochure.

NFRA Introduces New Back to Cool Refrigerated Promotion
The all-new End of Summer “Back to Cool” promotion will run from August 14 – September 22 taking advantage of summer picnics and back-to-school themes to boost sales in the refrigerated dairy department. The promotion will include an Online Instant Win Game for consumers and a Retail Display Contest. NFRA is looking for sponsoring brands to be featured in the Instant Win Game. To date, American Dairy Brands, Daisy Brands, General Mills, Michael Foods and Sargento Foods are participating in this exciting program. Click here for information on becoming a Back to Cool sponsor, or for more details on the promotion, click here.

Support the Growth of the Industry by Making Your Bring Us To Your Table! Freezer Favorites Contribution Today
The Bring Us To Your Table! Freezer Favorites campaign is reaching millions of consumers each year with positive messages about frozen foods. This initiative is completely industry-funded, and contributions allow NFRA to distribute consumer press releases and radio spots, print an annual promotional planning guide, develop point of sale materials and much more. If you have not yet made your financial commitment for 2006, we appeal to you to support this important effort. Click here to read more about the campaign and download a commitment form.

NFRA Welcomes Our Newest Members
Please welcome the companies listed below who have met the qualifications of membership and have joined the National Frozen & Refrigerated Foods Association.

MANUFACTURER

Jac’s Handy Meals, Inc./Spinach Sensations
www.spinachsensations.com

Oregon Ice Cream Company
www.oregonicecream.com

Palermo Villa Inc.
www.palermospizza.com

SALES AGENT

Club Marketing Services
www.clubmarketing.com

Market Choice, Inc.
www.themarketchoice.com

SUPPLIER

Rock-Tenn Company
www.rocktenn.com

TC Global Corporation
732-522-7020

Recent Certificate
of Excellence Recipients
The Certificate of Excellence, the highest operational award in the frozen and refrigerated foods industry, signifies that a facility conforms to the highest industry and government standards, and strictly adheres to the Code of Recommended Practices for the handling and merchandising of frozen & refrigerated foods.

RENEWALS

Ashland Cold Storage
1556 W 43rd St., Chicago, IL

Burris Refrigerated Logistics
4510 Dignan St., Jacksonville, FL

Interstate Cold Storage
2400 Setterlin Dr., Columbus, OH

Hanson Cold Storage
2875 S. Pipestone Rd., Benton Harbor, MI

Hanson Cold Storage
101 Bronson, Decatur, MI

Hanson Cold Storage
61834 Red Arrow Highway East, Hartford, MI

Minnesota Freezer Warehouse Co.
820 East 13th St., Albert Lea, MN

SCS Refrigerated Services
502 – 10th Ave. North, Algona, WA

SCS Refrigerated Services
2302 Milwaukee Way, Tacoma, WA

US Cold Storage
6983 NW 37th Ave., Miami, FL

US Cold Storge
601 Twin Rail Dr., Minooka, IL

John F. Rotelle, 70, a respected distribution executive passed away on Saturday, April 1, 2006. He served as chairman of the National Frozen Foods Association in 1978 and later as Treasurer from 1985 to 1988.

John was a former chairman of FAB, Inc. and the current chairman/president of the Distinguished Order of Zerocrats. He served on the Board of Trustees for several colleges and universities.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Frozen Food Industry Memorial Scholarship Fund (FFIMSF) c/o NFRA, P.O. Box 6069, Harrisburg, PA 17112.

Crossmark recently announced the promotion of Tim Hauser to Vice President, Crossmark Retailer Services. Hauser was formerly President of Crossmark Private Label.  Hauser is now responsible for developing service solutions for retailers.  Todd Mitchell has been promoted to Vice President, Crossmark Business Development Group. Mitchell is now responsible for overall business development targeted at client relationships.

R.A. Jones & Co. Inc. recently announced the promotion of Tami Van Vooren to National Account Manager for the foods industry. Van Vooren will be located in Cincinnati, OH; and will manage sales for various divisions of Kellogg, Kroger, Gerber and regional accounts in the Midwest. She has been with R.A. Jones since 1998.

Bakery Chef, Inc. recently introduced Krusteaz® Individually Wrapped Pancakes and French Toast. Wrapped in film that’s “dual ovenable”, you can pop them in the microwave or heat them in a conventional oven – right in the package. The 3-count pancakes and 2-count French Toast are perfect for buffets, hotels, schools, breakfast bars…almost anywhere breakfast is served. For more information: www.bakerychef.com

Golbon recently announced the addition of BC. Supplies, Inc. and Long Distribution, Inc. as new distributor members. BC. Supplies has been a strong player in the paper and janitorial/sanitary business in the Virgin Islands. Completing a warehouse addition this month, BC. Supplies is excited about the opportunities that lay ahead in dry, frozen, refrigerated, and paper/disposables. Long Distribution operates out of warehouses in Corinth, Meridian, and Tupelo, Mississippi, which encompasses the entire state. Long Distribution has focused on C-Store stocking over 7,000 SKU’s. For more information: www.golbon.com

Organic Valley Family of Farms recently announced they are once again partnering with Chefs Collaborative, a national organization of chefs and other food community professionals in celebration of Earth Day, April 22. Organic Valley and Chefs Collaborative share the same philosophies of using local, sustainable, seasonal and/or organic ingredients. Earth Dinners will take place in New York, San Francisco, Minneapolis and other locations in restaurants, homes and schools. Tips on how to host an Earth Dinner are available at www.earthdinner.org. For more information: www.organicvalley.coop

RFID Journal LIVE! 2006: Putting RFID to Work will be held May 1-3, 2006, at the MGM Grand, Las Vegas. Whether you’re just starting to research RFID’s potential for your business or are looking to learn best practices, the 4th annual RFID Journal LIVE! has the educational content, technology solutions and networking opportunities you need to put RFID to work. The event features tracks focused on using RFID in five key vertical industries, plus three tracks that show you how to get started, how to deploy RFID and how to develop an RFID strategy. For more information and to register:
http://www.rfidjournal.com/live2006/

Unified Western Grocers recently changed the name of its specialty grocery subsidiary to Market Centre to better reflect the company’s broad range of product offerings. Market Centre replaces a confusing array of names and acronyms that the company had been known as over the years, including Grocers Specialty Company (GSC) in Southern California and Gourmet Specialty Company (Also GSC) in Northern California. Market Centre, was selected because it creates a single, recognizable brand identity to the company. For more information: 323-264-5200 ext. 4150