The American Frozen Food Institute (AFFI) and the National Frozen & Refrigerated Foods Association (NFRA) announced that the Distinguished Order of Zerocrats has selected two food industry leaders as the 2011 Frozen Food Hall of Fame inductees.
These inductees are the late Robert D Burris, former president of Burris Logistics; and A R “Ray” Walker, former chief executive officer of Patterson Vegetable Company. They will be honored February 19, 2011, at a dinner at the AFFI Frozen Food Convention in San Francisco CA. The event will be held at 7 pm at the Hyatt Regency Embarcadero.
Burris began working for the family business at age 12. He joined Burris Logistics full-time in 1966 after graduation from the University of Delaware. Burris became president of the company in 1980, which today operates 17 distribution centers and a fleet of refrigerated transportation equipment throughout the eastern United States. He served on the NFRA board of directors from 1977 to 1982. Burris died from cancer Sept 19, 2010, and is survived by his wife Susan and their three children and eight grandchildren.
Walker has dedicated the past 40 years of his career to the frozen food industry in varied positions. He joined Patterson Frozen Foods in 1985 as vice-president of sales and in 2000 was named CEO. Walker has served as a AFFI board chairman and as a board member of the California League of Food Processors. He and his wife Remo have three children and nine grandchildren.
The Distinguished Order of Zerocrats is an organization of industry members whose mission is to maintain the tradition of promoting the image and advancement of the frozen food industry. The Zerocrats established the Frozen Food Hall of Fame in 1990 to honor individuals who have helped shape the industry with their hard work and dedication.
