Meat+Poultry - November 2020 - 10

BUSINESS NOTES

Poultry industry exec
Blake Lovette dies
of Perdue's Shenandoah Products Corp.
Then in 1988, he returned to his roots
at Holly Farms to become president and
chief operating officer. During 1989, he
oversaw Holly's acquisition by Tyson
Foods Inc.
Following the merger with Tyson,
Lovette left Holly Farms and purchased
Lovette Egg. Co., which he renamed
Lovette Co. Eventually, Blake sold the
Lovette Co. to Conagra Poultry in 1998.
Lovette served as president of Conagra
Poultry until his retirement in 2003.
He served on the boards of many
industry-related organizations, including
the National Chicken Council, US Poultry
and Egg Association, American Poultry
Export Council, NC Poultry Federation
and Arkansas Poultry Federation and was
inducted into the North Carolina Poultry
Federation Hall of Fame in 2010.

Rastelli Foods pitches
craft burger to Walmart

Australia and Mozambique applied for the
chance to pitch a Walmart merchant, a 44%
increase in submissions from 2019. The
number of meetings - nearly 900 - also
increased 44% due to the virtual nature of
this year's event, the company said.
"No other retailer provides small
businesses with as many channels and
avenues to success and we're thrilled
with their response to Walmart's first-ever
virtual Open Call event," said Laura
Phillips, Walmart senior vice president for
global sourcing and US manufacturing.
"It's truly inspiring to see the strong
entrepreneurial spirit of this year's
participants. Despite the challenges small
businesses have faced this year, they've
brought incredible energy, innovation and
ingenuity to their product pitch meetings
and we are excited about what this means
for our customers, our communities and
our commitment to source an additional
$250 billion in US manufactured products
that support American jobs."

Rastelli Foods Group, a family-owned,
vertically integrated, global food
processing and service company, joined
more than 175 companies to advance
to the next stage of Walmart's first-ever
virtual Open Call event.
More than 800 small businesses from
across the United States pitched their
products to Walmart and Sam's Club
merchants as part of the event. Success
during the next phase could mean a spot
on store and club shelves for Rastelli
Foods product - a chuck and short rib
craft burger.
Swedesboro, NJ-based Rastelli Foods
currently supplies major retailers Costco
and BJ's Wholesale Club, along with
various hotels, restaurants, institutions and
retail markets.
Walmart said more than 4,800 small
businesses representing 49 states, the
District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Canada,

10

MEAT+ POULTRY | 11.20 | www.meatpoultry.com

The United Kingdom
resumed shipping beef
to the United States on
Sept. 30, for the first time
since 1996. European
beef has been banned in
the United States since
the bovine spongiform
encephalopathy (BSE),
or mad cow disease,
outbreak in the United
Kingdom more than 20
years ago. In the summer
of 2019, the United States
agreed to equivalence
standards on the United
Kingdom's disease
control measure after
inspections took place.
The ban was lifted in
March 2020.
"The US represents
an important potential
market for our red meat
exports and today's first
shipment is the result
of the hard work and
persistence of industry
and government to bring
about this crucial next
step," said Phil Hadley,
international market
development director
for the Agriculture
and Horticulture
Development Board
(AHDB).
The first shipment
of beef originated from
Foyle Food Group, Foyle
Campsie in Northern
Ireland. More shipments
from around the United
Kingdom are expected in
the coming weeks.
The export business
to the United States is
estimated to be worth
£66 million ($85 million)
over the next five years.

Sturdivant Funeral Home

Blake Lovette, the
longtime poultry
industry executive
and former chief
executive officer of
Holly Farms, died
at the age of 77 on
Sept. 29, after a
brief illness.
Lovette began
his poultry career at Wilkesboro, NC-based
Holly Farms working in quality control
for the company that his late brother Fred
Lovette founded.
In 1976, he was named executive vice
president of Holly Farms. Two years later,
he took a job as executive vice president at
Russellville, Ark.-based Valmac Industries
Inc. and eventually worked as CEO. After
Valmac, Lovette moved on to Perdue
Farms in 1985 and took over as president

UK resumes
beef exports
to US
http://www.meatpoultry.com
Meat+Poultry - November 2020

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