People on the Move

NATIONAL REPORT – RaceTrac Petroleum Inc. promoted Kristina Appen to special projects manager. In this role, Appen will be managing priority strategic initiatives and will work under Natalie Bolch, director of strategy and development.

Appen serves as vice president of the Alpharetta, Ga.-based North Fulton Alliance of Young Professionals and also serves as a member of the Alpharetta Recreation and Parks Commission.

In other people news:

Alto-Shaam
Alto-Shaam promoted Adam Dixon to vice president of national accounts. He will be responsible for the strategic development and tactical execution of targeted regional/national chain and multi-unit account growth within the foodservice market segment.

Dixon was previously the company’s vice president of sales, Southwestern U.S.

With its beginnings in heated-holding compartments, Alto-Shaam has now grown to include the latest technology in cook-and-hold ovens, banqueting systems and more.

Bennett Pump Co.
Bennett Pump Co. added industry veteran Bo Sasnett to its sales and marketing team. Sasnett brings more than 25 years of experience in retail and commercial petroleum technologies, including extensive experience in fuel dispensers, loyalty marketing and alternative fuels.

Sasnett joins Bennett with considerable experience in the fuel dispensing technology industry—most recently, he served as president and CEO for Additech, an operator of at-the-pump additive systems.

Bennett Pump Co. provides fuel dispensing technology for retail and commercial applications as well as alternative fuels technology.

Commonwealth-Altadis Inc.
Commonwealth-Altadis Inc. (CA) announced a host of new positions and promotions. The company appointed Al Dejewski senior vice president for consumer marketing, and Eric Workman senior vice president for strategic operations. Both report directly to Kevin Freudenthal, president and CEO.

Prior to being named the head of consumer marketing for CA, Dejewski was senior vice president of global marketing at Specific Media.

Workman was handling the role of strategic operations for some time while heading consumer marketing, but will now be able to devote full attention to the position, stated CA.

In addition, veteran tobacco industry sales executive Rick Di Donato joined CA as vice president, national accounts, based at the company’s Fort Lauderdale, Fla., headquarters. He is responsible for the business development of CA’s full-line product portfolio of cigarettes, cigars and other tobacco products for commercially important customers.

Di Donato comes to CA from Japan Tobacco International USA, where he served as director of consumer and trade marketing and vice president of sales.

Scott Atwood was named a new national account manager and joins CA following more than 23 years’ experience in the tobacco industry. He will be responsible for accounts in Texas and Arkansas.

New National Account Manager Brian Charipar comes to CA from Eby-Brown Co. He is responsible for accounts in the Midwestern states of Wisconsin, Michigan and Illinois.

Other CA announcements include:

• Tim Chauncey joined the CA national account team as manager, responsible for accounts in Texas;
   
• Amy Bost Germany joined the national account team as manager, responsible for accounts in North Carolina;
   
• New National Account Manager Charles Simpson is responsible for accounts in Arizona, New Mexico and parts of Texas; and
   
• New National Account Manager Les Wooley will be responsible for accounts in Arkansas and Louisiana.

Farmer Brothers Co.
Mark J. Nelson joined Farmer Bros. Co. as treasurer and chief financial officer, reporting to Mike Keown, the company's president and CEO. Nelson brings to Farmer Bros. a broad range of experience leading a global team of financial controllers and managers in the areas of strategic planning, mergers and acquisitions, financial systems and process integration, international banking, and financial hedging.

Since 2010, he has been serving as vice president, corporate controller and chief accounting officer of Newport Corp., a global supplier of advanced technology products and systems.

In other company news, Farmer Brothers' Director of Coffee, Paul Thornton, was named president of the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA), effective April 15.

Through his role as chairman of the SCAA board, Thornton will contribute his expertise and knowledge as a spokesperson for the SCAA, and work with coffee-producing countries and other coffee industry leaders throughout the world, such as with the Specialty Coffee Association of Europe (SCAE) and the Specialty Coffee Association of Japan (SCAJ). Thornton was appointed vice president of the SCAA in 2012, after being elected by membership as its second vice president in 2011.

Manitowoc Co. Inc.
Michael Kachmer resigned as president of the Manitowoc Co.’s foodservice segment and as senior vice president of the company to pursue a CEO role.

Chairman and CEO Glen Tellock will lead the foodservice segment on an interim basis while the company searches for Kachmer’s successor.

The Manitowoc Co. Inc. is a multi-industry, capital goods manufacturer with more than 115 manufacturing, distribution, and service facilities in 26 countries.

The NPD Group
The NPD Group named Arnie Schwartz, formerly president of its foodservice business, to president of the company’s newly formed food and beverage and foodservice sector.

Reporting to Schwartz will be Ann Roberts, newly named president of NPD’s SupplyTrack foodservice distribution tracking service.

Kelley Fechner, who formerly headed up NPD’s Australian foodservice business, will now lead product management for the company’s food and beverage and foodservice research services.

In addition, Michele Schmal, NPD’s former head of food and beverage and foodservice product development and management, was been appointed vice president of its consumer product portfolio development.