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Dave Flitman Joins US Foods as CEO

Foodservice distributor US Foods Holding Corp. has named Dave Flitman as CEO effective Jan. 5. Flitman will also be a member of the US Foods Board of Directors.

Flitman has a background of global business leadership, executive management skills and extensive commercial distribution experience, along with significant expertise in operational excellence, supply chain, and general management with more than 35 years of experience in manufacturing and distribution across multiple, including food distribution.

“Dave is a highly accomplished executive who brings an impressive combination of CEO, supply chain and commercial experience and a proven track record of driving operational excellence, profitable growth, shareholder returns and a people-centric, high-performing culture,” said Bob Dutkowsky, executive chairman.

“This is a perfect time to join US Foods,” said Flitman. “It’s an honor and a privilege to lead US Foods into the future, alongside its talented 28,000 associates. I look forward to building on the current momentum the team has built in executing the company’s long-range plan, driving operational excellence, creating value for our customers and shareholders and fostering a culture where associates thrive.”

Since April 2021, Flitman has served as president and CEO of Builders FirstSource, the largest U.S. supplier of building products, prefabricated components and value-added services with annual revenues of approximately $23 billion. He was president and CEO at BMC Stock Holdings prior to the merger of the two companies. In these roles, he led his teams to consistently deliver industry-leading growth and profitability, exceed merger-related synergies in less than half the committed time and generate significant returns for shareholders.

Importantly, Flitman brings to the company significant knowledge and experience in the food distribution industry. From 2015 to 2018, he was president and CEO of Performance Foodservice, the largest segment of Performance Food Group, a U.S. foodservice distribution company.

Prior to that, he served as COO and president, USA & Latin America at Univar; senior executive vice president at Nalco; executive vice president and president, Water and Process Services at Ecolab and president at Allegheny Power. Flitman began his career at DuPont, where he spent two decades in various operational, commercial and global business leadership positions.

In addition to his previous experience as a director of Builders FirstSource and BMC Stock Holdings, Flitman also has been a director since 2017 at Veritiv Corporation, a leading packaging distribution company, where he is a member of the Audit and Finance Committee and chair of the Compensation and Leadership Development Committee.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Purdue University.

Dutkowsky will become non-executive chairman of the US Foods Board of Directors effective Jan. 5.

Andrew Iacobucci, interim CEO, will continue to lead US Foods until Flitman joins the company.

“I want to thank Andrew for his steadfast leadership over the past several months and as we finish the year,” said Dutkowsky. “In his interim role, he drove strong progress in executing our long-range plan as demonstrated in our third-quarter 2022 results.”

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(included) CPG to Make Winter Fancy Food Show Debut

On the heels of launching its successful partnership with the Specialty Food Association at the 2022 Summer Fancy Food Show, (included) CPG, a collective of BIPOC founders and executives in consumer packaged goods, will make its Winter Fancy Food Show debut Jan. 15-17, in Las Vegas.

The SFA has been a proud supporter of (included) since June of 2022 with the first cohort of (included) members joining the SFA at the Summer Fancy Food Show in New York City. The SFA continues to invest in creating a more inclusive specialty food industry by sponsoring an additional 10 BIPOC makers from (included) at the 2023 Winter Fancy Food Show.

“The Specialty Food Association is a not-for-profit membership trade association working toward a more inclusive specialty food industry,” said Bill Lynch, president, SFA. “In partnering with (included), we are able to reach a broader spectrum of BIPOC owners and makers who we can showcase at our Fancy Food Shows.”

The exhibitors from (included) are:

“As BIPOC founders whose mission is to make an impact at scale for both people and the planet there are so many challenges we face each and every day that make it an uphill battle. So we are extremely thankful and appreciative of the efforts made by (included) CPG and the Specialty Food Association to empower us with your resources, support, and advocacy to help us realize our dreams,” said Michael D. Ham, president, Wild Orchard.

The largest B2B specialty food event in the western United States, the Winter Fancy Food Show features thousands of specialty food and beverage products from around the world. The Show is open only to qualified members of the specialty food trade, industry affiliates, and journalists. For more information, click here.

For more coverage of the Winter Fancy Food Show, subscribe to Gourmet News.