The North American Millers' Association Kicks Off '100 Years - 1 Voice' A Celebration of the...

Business Editors

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 24, 2002

The North American Millers' Association (NAMA) kicked off "100 Years - 1 Voice", a celebration of the milling association's100th anniversary, at its annual meeting held at the Silverado Country Club & Resort

Millers' National Federation, now called NAMA, was founded at a meeting in Chicago in 1902 to give the milling industry an effective national organization. "100 Years - 1 Voice" honors the commitment of association millers to the growth and prosperity of the milling industry, acquiring strength and influence through one unified voice for more than 100 years.

The first event of the anniversary celebration was a dinner at the historical Greystone, home of the Culinary Institute of America. During the event, outgoing NAMA chairman Bernard J. Rothwell III surprised guests by reading a congratulatory letter from President George Bush.

President Bush wrote, "American grain products are vital to the health and economic prosperity of our Nation and to many countries around the world. We depend on our millers to help ensure a high-quality, reliable food supply for countless citizens."

Special guests included retired honorary members Richard R. DeGregorio, C.H. Guenther & Son, Inc.; F. King Doyle, King Flour Milling; James J. Feeney, General Mills, Inc.; Robert M. Howard, International Multifoods; E. Robert Kern, ConAgra, Inc.; Donald M. Mennel, The Mennel Milling Company; and Gerald M. Mitchell, Cargill, Inc.

During the business meeting, NAMA elected John Gillcrist, Bartlett Milling Company, Kansas City, Missouri, chairman and Guy R. Shoemaker, Horizon Milling, LLC, Minneapolis, Minnesota, vice chairman for the 2002 - 2004 term.

Mr. Gillcrist plans to build on the strength of NAMA by providing leadership through education, information and advocacy to members, policy makers, customers and suppliers in the areas of regulation and legislation, trade, supply and consumption.

NAMA will continue to celebrate "100 Years - 1 Voice" throughout the following year with additional events honoring the centennial anniversary of the millers' association.

NAMA has 42 member companies operating 166 wheat, corn, oat and rye mills in 38 states and 150 cities. The aggregate production capacity of NAMA's membership is more than 160 million pounds of product daily, which is about 90% of the total U.S. capacity.

To view the letter from President Bush go to http://namamillers.org/images/letter.jpg. For background information on NAMA go to http://namamillers.org/nr.html.

http://www.namamillers.org