Our Story
“If you look at our history, being a vehicle for the greater good has been the ethos of this company.”
– Brian Griffith, Owner and Executive Chairman
Action follows purpose. Collaboration leads to innovation. And more often than not, the future you can envision is the future you can make a reality. This was certainly true in 1919 when Enoch Luther (E.L.) Griffith, a Chicago salesman, and his son Carroll Ladd (C.L.) Griffith, a pharmacologist, took the first bold steps toward improving America’s food industry. The Griffiths’ aim was to introduce food science to the food industry. Why? Because they believed they could improve food safety while creating healthier, better-tasting food.
Fast forward four generations and a century later, it’s the same purpose-driven approach that continues to guide Griffith Foods today, and for the next 100 years
Our Founding
At a time when the nation’s food supply couldn’t be trusted, Enoch Luther (E.L.) Griffith and Carroll Ladd (C.L.) Griffith recognised the need to introduce food science to the food industry through personal customer relationships. Thus began the storefront start of the company at 429 W. 79th Street in Chicago.
North American Growth
On May 14, 1929, Griffith’s first company outside of the United States was established in Toronto under the leadership of E.L. Griffith’s nephews, Maurice and Luther Rector. Griffith introduces specialty flours, liquid seasonings, and imports German Prague Salt, which dramatically reduced the required curing times for ham, bacon, and sausage.
Product Development
Working to create safer, healthier and better-tasting food, Griffith utilized innovative technologies and processes to enhance the taste and safety of food products while reducing cost and speeding up production – developing Prague Powder “The Safe Fast Cure”, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, an essential and affordable building block of flavor, antioxidant seasonings and more.
Going Global
Then, as now, Griffith grew by helping its customers grow – expanding its product line and services with ingredients and technology made to assure dependable flavor, texture, and quality. E.L.’s grandson, Dean L. Griffith joins the company and pioneers a global spirit to adapt and meet the needs of the cultures we serve.
Increasing Innovation
Following new operations in South America, Europe, and Asia in the 1960s and 1970s, Dean Griffith restructured the company in 1978 to preserve its global footprint. Further pushes for improvement involved collaboration between culinary teams and food scientists, allowing Griffith to expand within the food industry.
Unit Paks offer processors and foodservice operations optimized batching and back-of-house efficiencies. Griffith Foods introduces HVP flavor extensions, Flava Glaze for BBQ, authentic liquid blends, and unique coating systems with increased durability and functionality in baked and fried applications.
Purposeful Evolution
By acquiring new companies, creating a new division, and further developing its core capabilities, the company blended together diverse approaches and points of view to help customers grow. Griffith acquired Custom Culinary® in 1991 to expand its soup, base, sauce, and gravy offerings, then launched its Innova®Flavors division in 1997, which greatly diversified its catalog of customizable natural flavorings, pastes, and marinades
Two new, state-of-the-art Culinary Centers are opened at the Alsip headquarters and in Europe to provide customers with additional product development resources. Custom Culinary® is acquired and Innova®, a manufacturer of savory flavors, is established. New facilities are built in Brazil, Southern China, and South Korea.
Built for Success
Griffith’s sustainability platform has been a key driver of change looking toward the future.
By following the four strategic thrusts – shared value, leverage technology, partner ecosystems, and health and nutrition – a positive impact has been made through endeavors like the Griffith Sustainably Sourced (GSS) program and clean-label products. These initiatives are both a validation of Griffith Foods’ past successes and an essential step in our continuing push to blend care and creativity to nourish the world.
Griffith Foods acquires a liquids facility focused on the production of sauces and soups. New manufacturing units are built in Mexico, India, and Northern China. Additional culinary centers are constructed within targeted facilities throughout the world. In 2019, the company launches TEROVA™, a supplier of sustainably sourced and superior spices, herbs, botanicals, and innovative ingredients, in order to scale sustainable sourcing efforts.
A New Era
Today, the world is Griffith Foods’ market. Its central pursuit builds on its legacy of blending care and creativity to nourish the world. Countless global partners rely on the company for seasonings, spices, coatings, sauces, and more, while its sustainability efforts support local and regional food ecosystems around the world.
Our Values
Born from our purpose, our values are at the heart of everything we do.
Make the Future Better
We are optimistic and courageous while making choices in pursuit of our dreams. Sustainability informs our curiosity, imagination, and innovation. We are passionate about leaving our planet a better place for future generations. We believe the best is yet to come.
Work Together Globally
We recognise our diversity creates a unique strength, and we learn from our colleagues and partners globally. By collaborating, communicating, sharing, and learning, we create better together.
Behave like Owners
We are passionate about creating long-term value. We believe that we are part of something bigger than ourselves and strive to make a difference. We trust each other and treat talent as a valuable resource. We believe in strategic risk-taking and in doing the right thing, especially when it is hard to do.
Build Customer Success
Recognizing that our success depends on our customers’ success, we work to create value and ensure success by understanding, anticipating and prioritizing customer needs. We build a mutual commitment to derive sustainable long-term value.
Deliver Results
We take personal responsibility for meeting our commitments. We are focused on achieving objectives aligned to our triple bottom line of people, planet, and performance. We execute with excellence, measure results, and reward success.
Act like Family
We are a caring family company where everyone has the opportunity to grow, follow their own personal “Purpose” and find fulfillment in their work. We support each other and demonstrate mutual respect. We nourish people’s well-being – physical, mental, and financial.
Our Family of Companies
Griffith Foods is a global product development partner specialising in food ingredients from seasoning and sauces to breadings, coatings, flavors, bakery products, and more.
Custom Culinary® specialises in providing foodservice and food processing professionals with real, authentic branded and proprietary culinary flavour systems.
InnovaFlavors creates customised meat and savoury flavours with unique signatures for a broad range of food applications.
TEROVA serves modern society with premium, sustainable ingredients, and products grown with a farmer first approach and full traceability.
Joint Ventures
Join Our Family
With 750 employees across Europe, representing 43 countries, our workforce needs to reflect the diversity of the communities where we (globally) operate. With a career at Griffith Foods, your diverse viewpoints, experiences, and backgrounds can connect to something greater. That also means feeling welcome, valued, and heard.
At Griffith Foods you can bring your purpose to life, you can create new opportunities for you to grow, develop, and make an impact on the sustainable future of our business and the world around us.
Discover how your work can nourish the world and help you succeed in your career while working together.
Our Leadership
We believe in inspiring leadership. Connected by a shared purpose, our leaders are committed to the well-being of every Griffith Foods employee and ready to share their knowledge and experience. They are maintaining responsible stewardship of the People, Planet, and Performance
Brian Griffith
Executive ChairmanBrian Griffith is the Executive Chairman of Griffith Foods, marking the fourth generation of his family to lead the company. Griffith Foods is a purpose-driven, family-owned global developer and maker of customized food recipes for food service restaurants, protein and snack companies. Griffith Foods has a unique combination of capabilities in the form of Insights, Culinary, Food, and Sensory Science that translate into some of the world’s most loved seasoning, coating and sauce recipes blended to exacting specifications that are culturally authentic and taste great. Founded in 1919, Griffith has grown and expanded globally to include a presence in over thirty countries.
Brian has a deep and fundamental belief in “business as a force for good” and therefore organized the company to drive further impact through Griffith’s Triple Bottom-line sustainability platform of People, Planet & Performance across all business units worldwide. Our Purpose at Griffith Foods is “We Blend Care and Creativity to Nourish the World….which means as a purpose-powered organization, we are focused on the integration of their Purpose, Values and Sustainability platform actioned through strategy & innovation to deliver positive change and impact that is good for people (all stakeholders) and the planet.
We play at the intersection of Sustainable Agricultural Systems and Health & Nutrition…”Better for You, Better for the Planet.”
TC Chatterjee
Chief Executive OfficerTC Chatterjee was named Chief Executive Officer in 2016. Before becoming CEO, TC held positions as Chief Operating Officer, as well as Group President across some of Griffith’s fastest-growing regions, including Central and South America, Asia Pacific, and India – Middle East, as well as Custom Culinary, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Griffith Foods™.
“Griffith’s global footprint and our ability to add value to our customers and their customers through our expertise and experience in food science, culinary arts, sensory and consumer insight help us offer a range of capabilities to enable our customers’ growth and innovation. We are proud of our ability to provide these locally as well as globally.”
Wim van Roekel
President, EuropeWim van Roekel joined Griffith Foods in 2017 after spending 21 years with global food ingredients companies across the globe. Wim leads the European business, supported by 650 employees in 6 locations throughout Europe.
“Agility and continuous differentiation are critically important for complex business in Europe. By living our purpose, we enjoy the daily challenge of supporting our customers in the exciting European marketplace. Our team provides creative culinary solutions through close collaborations with partners and customers in our value chain, adding value to their businesses. I’m both proud and passionate about the role Griffith Foods plays in that arena.”
Tarik Abida
Vice President Finance Europe & AfricaTarik ABIDA joined Griffith Foods in 2019 as VP Finance Europe following a 17-year Finance career in global food and Retail companies, where he built a strong background in finance transformation and team leadership. Tarik leads the controlling, financial shared service, FP&A, Risk, Treasury, and M&A for the European operating unit
Johan Boot
Vice President of Research & Development Europe & AfricaHolding a Ph.D. in Biochemistry/Biotechnology from the University of Amsterdam, I have over 25 years of experience in the food industry with a broad knowledge of innovation process management including strategy definition, portfolio- and cross-functional project management covering a wide range of food and food ingredient products for the business-to-consumer and the business-to-business food industry.
Combining 20+ years of experience in Unilever, one of the largest food companies, with that of setting up Hampton Creek, now Just, a successful private equity-funded startup company developing plant-based products being offered in both retail and foodservice outlets.
Leading large innovation project teams across functions and cultures in Europe, Asia, and the Americas.
Joanne Smith
Human Resources Director Europe & AfricaArnaud Le Guen
Vice President Purchasing & Quality Europe & AfricaArnaud Le Guen is Vice President Purchasing & Quality for Griffith Foods Europe. He is also responsible for the Griffith Foods Europe Sustainability platform.
Originally joining the Griffith Foods teams in 2014, he has +15 years of experience in the food industry with extensive international work experience.
With an MBA at Texas A&M International University USA, Arnaud has started his professional career in the retail industry; working for Auchan in Texas as a Category Manager and then Carrefour as a European private labels manager. He has then joined Compass Group UK (Food Service) where he has held several positions such as Head of eSourcing and Global Purchasing Manager.
Giuseppe Onorato
Vice President Supply Chain & Manufacturing Europe & AfricaGiuseppe Onorato joined Griffith Foods in 2019 as Vice President Supply Chain & Manufacturing for Europe. Giuseppe brings more than 11 years of experience with Tobacco, Beverage, and Engineering companies across the globe.
He holds a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, he is a Chartered Engineer, and a Six Sigma Master Black Belt. He has completed executive education at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Postgraduates Studies at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) and at The University of Glasgow in Applied Computational Fluid Dynamics.
He defines himself as a facilitator, creating a pleasant work environment, developing talents by means of mentoring and empowering while challenging the status quo and “breaking silos”.
Giuseppe lives with his wife and son in Barcelona, and he is fluent in Italian, Spanish, Catalan, English, and French.
He enjoys deep freediving and yoga while being very passionate about motorsports, and he is a Certified 3rd Dan Black Belt Karate Instructor.
Giuseppe’s motto recently became “Why not?”
Nathan Sellen
IT Director Europe & AfricaNathan has been working in Food Manufacture and Agriculture for the last 18 years and prior to that worked in the Automotive sector for 7 years. He has a Degree in Economics and a Masters (with Distinction) in Computing and during his career has held a variety of leadership roles in IT before joining Griffith Foods in December 2018. Having lived and worked in Germany, Finland, Singapore, China, Brazil, and the US, Nathan has a passion for languages and meeting people of different cultures. He is active in the Transition Movement, Sustainability and holds a Permaculture Design Certificate. Core to his purpose is a belief that we all need to think differently in order to make a difference in the world. When not working, Nathan grows and processes his family’s own fruit and vegetables and manages a mico-vineyard, all in the pursuit of a more self-sufficient lifestyle. In addition, he likes to play the guitar, write poetry, is a 3rd Dan Black belt in karate, and loves using his hands to create and build things.
Rochelle Schaetzl
Head of Marketing Europe & AfricaRochelle Schätzl was born and raised in Southern Africa and holds degrees in Food Science and Marketing from the University of Pretoria in South Africa as well as Business Leadership qualifications from IMD, Switzerland. Complimented by a professional Culinary chefs’ certification, she has extensive expertise in the Food industry
She holds and has held various positions within the international food industry including:
- Director of the South African Chef’s Association
- Honorary member of the Indian Federation of Culinary Associations
- Program Director Worldchefs Academy.
Career history:
- Assistant Vice president for Business capability development, Nestle Professional
- Owner & Founder We-Me Collaborations
- Research & Development Director, Nando´s
- Business Development Manager with Firmenich
Rochelle is Head of Marketing for Griffith Foods in Europe in Africa, a position that allows her to inspire people to think differently about her passions for food, travel and foodservice
Her professional travels have taken her all over the world and enabled her to develop a unique understanding of the diverse cultures and cuisines and how these have e internationally. Rochelle is a dynamic, inspired, and passionately African.
Helen Smith
Head of Sales Europe & AfricaA skilled and successful commercial leader with 25+ years’ experience in developing thriving partnership relationships within food development. Working with QSR, Foodservice, Snacks, B2B, and retail. Key personal values – family, community, teamwork, integrity, and creativity
Thomas Verrooten
General Manager North & East EuropeJarnail Sani
General Manager UK & IrelandA qualified, enthusiastic and highly self-motivated General Manager with a proven track record for people management, innovation, continuous improvement, and achieving sustainable change successfully, founded on comprehensive experience within an FMCG environment. I have a keen business focus through achievement-oriented management control, derived from strong Manufacturing, Financial, Quality, and commercial understanding and persistence and determination to fulfill challenging objectives.
Fernando Gomez
General Manager South Europe
Sergi Estragues
General manager Africa & Custom Culinary®Sergi leads the Other Foodservice segment in Griffith Foods™ Europe, under the Custom Culinary® business model. He is responsible as well for the expansion of Griffith Foods™ throughout Sub Saharan Africa.
Previously, within Griffith Foods™, he has had different levels of responsibility in the Commercial and Management structures of Spain and Italy.
His food industry career started while his stay of six years in the flavor company Lucta, SA., where he had responsibilities as Product and Area Manager. Before, he had been working for the filter paper industry, with Ahlstrom group, as responsible for New Market expansion.
Born in 1970, and lawyer by the University of Barcelona, Sergi lectures in various Master studies in the catalan universities of Barcelona (University of Barcelona, Long life learning institute and University Rovira i Virgili – University of Tarragona)
Partnerships and Ecosystem
