Naturipe Farms, Salinas, Calif., has appointed Jill Overdorf as director of business development for foodservice.
She joined the berry company in August 2017 as director of business development for its value-added division. In the newly created role at Naturipe, Overdorf will oversee expansion of foodservice for fresh and value-added product lines, according to a news release.
She has been director of business and culinary development and corporate executive chef for Coosemans L.A., and was an executive chef for 20 years for numerous entities include Le Cirque, the Telluride Film Festival and Bon Appetit Management Co. She graduated with honors from the Culinary Institute of America.
Overdorf has been on the Produce Marketing Association’s board of directors, the PMA Center for Growing Talent board of directors and she is the co-chairwoman of the PMA Foodservice Conference July 26-27 in Monterey, Calif.
“Jill’s passion for produce and her depth and breadth of culinary experience are the perfect combination to bring an invigorated focus to our foodservice offerings,” Dwight Ferguson, CEO and president of Naturipe Farms, said in the release.
“With my culinary background, the opportunity to passionately share a full portfolio of our grower-owner’s products with menu developers, B&I (business and industry), healthcare and leisure venues is a logical extension of Naturipe’s year-around availability.”
Overdorf said she’s looking forward to sharing the story of Naturipe farmers with the foodservice community
“Naturipe Farms is so well represented in the retail marketplace, it’s time for chefs to know our quality fruit is available as a consistent ingredient for their menus,” she said in the release.
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