The Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) has named the recipients of this year’s Hall of Achievement Awards: Irene Rosenfeld and Fred Morganthall. Rosenfeld is the retired chairman and CEO of Mondelēz International Inc., and Morganthall served as EVP of Kroger and president of Harris Teeter.
The Hall of Achievement Award, GMA’s highest honor, recognizes the “service and extraordinary contributions of distinguished food, beverage and consumer packaged goods industry leaders.” Both winners will be presented with the award at GMA’s Leadership Forum in August at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
“Irene Rosenfeld has been a trailblazer in the food industry in many ways,” said GMA CEO Pam Bailey. “Not only was she one of the first women to serve on the GMA board in a leadership role, she led some of the most iconic consumer brands through times of major transition. The creation of Mondelēz International as a global snacking powerhouse is largely due to Irene’s foresight, understanding of the marketplace, and willingness to take risks that ultimately paid off. Irene was a great CEO and a bold leader. I’m so pleased that the GMA board voted her a 2018 Hall of Achievement Award Winner.”
In 2006, Rosenfeld began serving as CEO of Kraft Foods, the predecessor company to Mondelēz International, and she became chairman in 2007. During her tenure, she changed the face, footprint and prospects of the company by reinvigorating iconic brands, transforming the portfolio into high-growth snacks categories, strengthening the company’s presence in emerging markets and aggressively improving margins, says GMA. Notably, she led the acquisition of Cadbury in 2010 and launched Mondelēz International in 2012, following the spin-off of the company’s North American grocery operations.
“Rosenfeld paved the way for the company’s success; with 2017 net revenue of approximately $26 billion, Mondelēz International is now a pre-eminent global leader in the chocolate, biscuits, gum and candy industry,” GMA said in a statement.
Rosenfeld repeatedly has been featured on Forbes, Financial Times and Fortune lists such as the “Top 50 Women in Global Business,” “50 Most Powerful Women in Business,” and the world’s “100 Most Powerful Women.” She holds a Ph.D. in marketing and statistics, an M.S. in business administration and a B.A. in psychology, all from Cornell University.
The second 2018 Hall of Achievement honoree is Fred Morganthall of Harris Teeter and Kroger.
“Fred Morganthall is one of the finest leaders this industry has ever seen,” said Chris Policinski, CEO of Land O’Lakes and chairman of the GMA Board of Directors. “Fred’s no-nonsense approach and impeccable standards helped shape the retail and grocery manufacturing industry into what it is today. What’s more, his genuine care and concern for employees, colleagues and associates cannot be matched. In today’s business climate, it is difficult to put aside daily work challenges to look out for others, but Fred always went above and beyond to fight for his people. We are honored to present him with the Hall of Achievement Award.”
Fred Morganthall started out in grocery retail at Spartan Stores in Grand Rapids, Michigan. In 1986, he joined Harris Teeter as the director of grocery merchandising. He served as VP of merchandising, VP of distribution, and VP of operations before ultimately being named president in 1997. Under his leadership, Harris Teeter successfully differentiated itself from its competitors as a leading brand in customer service and in-store experience, which led to significant company growth, says GMA.
After Harris Teeter merged with Kroger in 2014, Morganthall continued to lead the company on to success first as VP, and later as EVP. In this capacity, he was responsible for all retail operations for both Kroger and Food 4 Less.
Morganthall is an active leader in the grocery manufacturing and retail industry; he served as chairman of the Food Marketing Institute and in 2016 was awarded the organization’s prestigious Sidney R. Rabb Award for his leadership.
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