2026 Women of Influence in the Food Industry

The Shelby-Griffin Report presents the 21st annual tribute to Women of Influence in the food industry. For 21 years, we’ve honored the outstanding women shaping the food industry—from executives and innovators to mentors and community leaders. This year’s nominees represent a diverse range of roles, backgrounds, and regions, each making a profound impact in their careers and beyond.

Explore their stories below, and join us in celebrating their achievements.

2026 Women of Influence

2026 Women of Influence

Rachel McLaughlin

PB Category Manager -- Snacking, Ahold Delhaize USA

Rachel McLaughlin has been in her current role for several years. During this time, she has been able to lead all five Ahold Delhaize USA brands through multiple private brand strategy recommendations and has been working with suppliers/sourcing to get them implemented.

McLaughlin also has spearheaded improving the processes to bring these products to life at store level by pulling key stakeholders together and challenging how/where efficiencies can be gained. This allows the company to improve and have more visibility to where products are in the pipeline.

McLaughlin is a strong leader to whom the team looks at as a subject matter expert. She is always willing to help with her knowledge and a smile, which makes her a great asset and well deserving of being a Woman of Influence.

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2026 Women of Influence

Rachel Razzano

Human Resource Business Partner, Stop & Shop

Rachel Razzano is a driven and inspiring human resources business partner who stepped into one of the most complex districts in New York City and made a quick impact.

Through strong leadership, she delivered the best associate engagement results in the region, improving scores by four points. This reflects her results-oriented mindset and her ability to build trust across a diverse population.

Razzano connects with associates at every level and demonstrates company values through integrity, compassion and accountability. She shares her expertise to support others' success and has become a trusted mentor, offering guidance, encouragement and perspective.

Razzano champions the business and its people, advocating for associates by partnering with leaders to ensure their voices are heard. She fosters an environment where individuals feel valued, supported and empowered. Her commitment extends beyond operations, reflecting a deep dedication to service, teamwork and community.

Razzano also partners with her team to support local initiatives across her district, including the annual Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Walk, where she helps coordinate event setup and staffing.

In addition, she is a passionate supporter of the company's school food pantry program (helps with setup and openings), which provides resources to students and families in need.

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2026 Women of Influence

Rebecca Morgan

Regional Sales Manager, Niagra Bottling

Rebecca "Becca" Morgan is an open-minded, optimistic leader who brings passion, energy and thoughtfulness to her work. She is known for being trustworthy and approachable, creating an environment where others feel supported and confident relying on her.

Driven and results-oriented, Morgan leads with a grounded presence and a strong commitment to delivering outcomes. She is a pleasure to work with and consistently elevates those around her.

Recognized by her organization as a high-potential leader, Morgan was selected to attend the Food Industry Management program at the University of Southern California, an investment in her continued growth and future leadership impact. She represents a rising leader who is expanding her influence and helping shape the future of the food industry.

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2026 Women of Influence

Rebekah Stewart

VP, Business Intelligence, Acosta Group

Rebekah Stewart delivered measurable business impact by elevating customer performance, advancing insight‑led innovation and strengthening operational efficiency. Under her leadership, all vertical customer teams outperformed total‑store trends by 0.4 to 3.7 points, reflecting strong alignment to client priorities and disciplined, insight‑driven execution. She leveraged standardized reporting and analytics to guide leadership decisions, prioritize investments and direct resources toward the highest‑value opportunities. Her teams also influenced major commercial wins by providing strategic insights that supported new item launches, expanded advisory partnerships and elevated category leadership designations. Stewart led the development and launch of the Kroger Insights Hub to more than 160 clients, transforming customer conversations from retrospective reporting to forward‑looking strategy. The platform has been widely recognized as a game‑changing innovation and has contributed to more than $1.5 million in incremental client growth. Stewart also introduced Kroger Shelf Intelligence to improve visibility into shelf‑level performance and led the omnichannel data workstream, delivering a consolidated view of digital and brick‑and‑mortar trends to support smarter investment decisions. Operationally, she drove a 29 percent reduction in recurring reporting hours through process redesign and resource optimization.

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2026 Women of Influence

Reimi Colson

Retail Accounting Manager, Associated Grocers of New England

Reimi Colson is an exceptional leader whose dedication, expertise and commitment to excellence make her deserving of recognition as a Woman of Influence. Her focus on supporting AG and its corporate stores has had a lasting impact on the organization.

Colson demonstrates a results-oriented mindset, ensuring that financials are delivered in a timely manner and with the highest level of accuracy. Her attention to detail and strong sense of accountability have made her a trusted partner across the business. She approaches every challenge with a solutions-driven attitude, always willing to go above and beyond to support her team and the broader organization.

Colson's career progression is a testament to her determination and capability. Rising from accounts payable clerk to her current role, she has developed a deep and well-rounded understanding of the business. This experience allows her to lead with technical expertise and practical insight, making her an invaluable resource to her team and peers.

As a leader, Colson fosters a culture of collaboration, accountability and continuous improvement. She leads by example, demonstrating professionalism, resilience and a strong work ethic in all that she does. Her ability to balance operational excellence with team development sets her apart.

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2026 Women of Influence

Rhonda DeMello

VP Operations Support, Harris Teeter

Rhonda DeMello is a leader whose career exemplifies excellence, dedication and a relentless focus on people and customer experience. In her current role, she oversees support of operations for more than 250 stores and 85-plus fuel centers.

In this role, she recently led teams through back-to-back snowstorms, ensuring uninterrupted service and safety, while continuing to push for operational excellence and superior customer service.

DeMello is proactive in developing her teams, fostering continuous improvement and ensuring associates grow stronger every day.

Her influence extends beyond the workplace. She has served on the board of directors for USO North Carolina and is a volunteer and fundraiser for St. Jude Research Hospital. She also supports ALS and Breast Cancer research initiatives.

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2026 Women of Influence

Ruth Bain

Instructional Design and Employee Development Manager, Merchants Distributors (MDI)

Ruth Bain's impact on Merchants Distributors (MDI) is best seen in the strength, consistency and scalability of our leadership development efforts. In her current role, she has played a key role in shaping programs that build leadership capability across the organization and directly support operational excellence.

Bain has been instrumental in the design and delivery of enterprise programs such as Foundations of Leadership, Manager Accelerator Program and Accelerated Leadership Experience. These programs establish a common leadership language, clarify expectations for leaders at every level and equip managers with practical tools they can apply immediately on the job. Her work ensures that leadership development is not theoretical, but embedded into how teams lead, coach and perform every day.

Beyond individual programs, Bain brings structure and continuity to MDI's broader talent strategy. She connects learning to business priorities, strengthens manager effectiveness and ensures programs are aligned, repeatable and sustainable as the organization grows. Her ability to translate complex organizational needs into clear, well-designed development experiences has elevated leadership readiness across departments.

Bain's influence extends through the leaders she has developed, the teams they lead and the culture they shape. Her steady leadership, strategic mindset and commitment to employee development have made a difference.

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2026 Women of Influence

Sabrina Fair

Replenishment Manager, United Supermarkets

Sabrina Fair plays a vital role in keeping The United Family's fresh departments running smoothly every day. She leads the team that ensures 100 stores across Texas and New Mexico are stocked with the high‑quality meat, deli and bakery items guests rely on. Fair's work requires constant coordination, smart forecasting and a deep understanding of how to balance freshness, availability and waste. Thanks to her steady leadership, stores receive what they need on time and with the quality guests expect.

Fair's influence reaches far beyond her team. The decisions she guides shape the guest experience, support store teams and protect the company's financial health. She leads a specialized group of buyers and quality‑control experts, helping them grow while maintaining high standards across multiple departments.

This past year, Fair delivered exceptional results while navigating the company's complex system conversion. She kept her team focused, maintained strong service levels and ensured stores never felt the strain of the transition. Her attention to detail and commitment to freshness helped the company move forward without sacrificing performance.

Beyond her professional accomplishments, Fair has volunteered with Meals on Wheels for more than 25 years and is active in her church community. Her 26‑year career with The United Family reflects loyalty, excellence and a genuine commitment to serving others.

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2026 Women of Influence

Sabrina Malloy

Sales Support, Golden Cannoli Shells Co.

Sabrina Malloy is being recognized for her leadership, vision and impact as a third-generation leader at Golden Cannoli. Carrying forward a family legacy is no small responsibility, yet she has embraced that role with professionalism, energy and a clear commitment to excellence.

As part of the next generation of leadership, Malloy represents the strength of tradition paired with a forward-looking mindset. She understands the value of preserving the quality, reputation and relationships that have made Golden Cannoli a respected name, while also helping position the company for continued growth and success in a changing industry. That balance of honoring the past while building for the future is one of the qualities that makes her outstanding.

Malloy's influence extends beyond her title. She reflects the values that define strong leadership: dedication, integrity, resilience and the ability to inspire confidence in those around her. She is helping shape the future of a multi-generational business while setting an example for other women in the industry through her work ethic and leadership.

The Women of Influence Award celebrates leaders who make a difference in their companies and communities. Malloy embodies those qualities. Her contributions to Golden Cannoli, her commitment to upholding a family-built legacy and her role in driving the business forward make her deserving of the honor.

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2026 Women of Influence

Saee Pansare

Lead Product Manager, DoorDash

Saee Pansare is a results-driven leader shaping the future of food across CPG, grocery retail and digital marketplaces. With a foundation in food engineering, she brings deep expertise across product innovation, commercialization and food commerce technology.

At Kraft Heinz, she commercialized five new food products, contributing more than $15 million in annual revenue and advancing natural ingredient reformulations that improved consumer transparency.

At Amazon Grocery, Pansare led digital shopping innovations that expanded grocery assortment by 30 percent and unlocked an estimated $400 million in business value. She also drove operational improvements in grocery pickup that reduced wait times, increased customer satisfaction by 400 basis points and saved $6 million in costs.

At DoorDash, Pansare leads 0-to-1 enterprise meal solutions product, building a $300 million business from scratch.

Beyond corporate impact, Pansare is a recognized industry contributor. She served as a judge for the Institute of Food Technologists' startup pitch competition and judged national hackathons at Harvard, Stanford and Princeton universities. She reviews academic journal submissions and USDA grant proposals and is a published thought leader on food retail innovation.

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