Leadership Awards

Entire villages in Greece and other parts of the Mediterranean owe their continued prosperity to Phil Meldrum, founder and CEO of FoodMatch in New York City, which has been supporting small farmers internationally and domestically for the past 28 years.

After a 35-year career working in the art world and for nonprofit organizations, Anna Hammond embarked on a for-profit journey with a not-for-profit mission. “We live in a world of food abundance yet 30 percent or more of that food goes to waste,” said the 62-year-old Hammond, CEO of Matriark Foods, New York City. “People have diet-related illnesses due to improper nutrition. We need to change the system so everybody has access to healthy, nutritious food.”

Building upon the progressive traditions of Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, the founders of Ben & Jerry’s, Antonio McBroom is making a lasting impact on the rights of the disenfranchised in the Southeast, as the owner of 20 Ben & Jerry’s franchises in North Carolina, Washington, DC, Georgia, Florida, Texas, Tennessee, and other southern states.

When Paul Abbott joined Giant Eagle as a bagger two weeks after his 16th birthday, he had no idea that he would work at the Pittsburgh-based grocer for 34+ years and be honored with the 2024 Specialty Food Association Leadership Award for Outstanding Buyer.

Hundreds of family farmers and millions of hogs are thankful for the work done by Paul Willis during his 40+ years as an animal champion through his long-time leadership at Niman Ranch and nonprofits concerned with animal welfare and sustainability.