WASHINGTON, D.C. – The American Bakers Association (ABA) is honored to name Brittany Tomlin, Snacks Process Engineer, Kellogg Company, the recipient of the Vander Heide Award and Robert Commandant, Production Supervisor, Weston Foods, Colonial Cookies Division, as the Phelps Award recipient for the 2017.
“On behalf of the American Bakers Association, I congratulate Brittany and Robert on achieving bakery manufacturing excellence through education,” said ABA President & CEO Robb MacKie. “These two dedicated individuals have set the example for the industry by furthering and strengthening their technical skills to advance their careers, their teams and their companies.”
The Vander Heide Award is presented every year at the Technical Conference to the Cookie and Cracker Academy’s Cookie and Cracker Manufacturing Course graduate who receives the highest score (or grade point average) for the graduating year. In addition, the Phelps Award is awarded to the graduating student with the second highest grade point average in the course. It was presented for the first time last year at the Technical Conference and was established in honor of the course’s dedicated pioneer of the Correspondence Course – Kathy Kinter Phelps. The awards are typically kept as surprises to the honorees until the unveil at the Technical Conference.
Tomlin earned her undergraduate & master’s degrees from the University of Florida in Biological and Food Engineering before joining Kellogg in 2012 as a Food Technologist, supporting the Cookies and On-the-Go innovation group. As a Food Technologist, Tomlin focused on process optimization, product scale-up and test plan development. In 2015, she transitioned to the Global Engineering Group as a Process Engineer supporting Crackers. Her supervisor Shelley Crawford, Director, Global Snacks Process Engineering, was in attendance for the awards’ ceremony.
Robert Commandant is a Production Supervisor at Weston Foods Canada and has been with Colonial for ten years. Both Commandant and his supervisor, Tim Brewer, Production Manager, Weston Foods Canada, apologize for not being able to attend. Commandant said he looks forward to implementing what he has learned from the course to his day-to-day-production, and Brewer expressed appreciation for the award.
###
About the American Bakers Association:
The American Bakers Association (ABA) is the Washington D.C.-based voice of the wholesale baking industry. Since 1897, ABA has represented the interests of bakers before the U.S. Congress, federal agencies, and international regulatory authorities. ABA advocates on behalf of more than 1,000 baking facilities and baking company suppliers. ABA members produce bread, rolls, cookies, crackers, bagels, sweet goods, tortillas and many other wholesome, nutritious, baked products for America’s families. The baking industry generates more than $153 billion in economic activity annually and employs more than 799,500 highly skilled people.
About the 2017 Technical Conference:
The Technical Conference is the largest conference designed specifically for cookie, cracker and baking manufacturing professionals to participate in hands-on training, strengthen skills and knowledge, and engage in powerful industry networking. The renowned Technical Conference, formerly produced by the Biscuit and Cracker Manufacturers’ Association (B&CMA), is part of the enhanced portfolio of services available to the new, unified membership, following the merger of ABA and B&CMA. Follow with #ABATechConference to join the conversation and stay updated.
Source: American Bakers Association
