People-first, people-forward

Above all, we value the relationships with both our customers and the people who make up our company.

If we give you our word, you can count on us to follow through. We’ve baked a strong foundation of trust into our company culture, and put it at the core of all our partnerships.

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Our priorities

Keeping our people safe

When we prioritize safety as a company, we put our people first.

Prioritizing partnerships

We’re stronger together. When we work as a team, we can make a bigger impact.

Elevating customer performance

We’re here to do the behind-the-scenes work that lets our customers and their brands shine.

Contributing to local communities

Our giving back initiatives are our small way of saying "thank you" to our wonderful communities.

Nourishing America's families

At the end of the day, we’re proud to have a part in providing families with dependable, delightful food products.

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Profiles

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Profile

Fostering innovation through R&D

See more profiles

Senior leadership team

Darlene Nicosia
Chief Executive Officer
Darlene Nicosia was named Hearthside Food Solutions’ Chief Executive Officer on August 1, 2022. She brings over 30 years of experience building and partnering with some of the world’s largest brands, retailers, and suppliers to drive value creation and transformational growth in the consumer products industry. Ms. Nicosia joined Hearthside from The Coca-Cola Company where she most recently served as the President Canada & Northeast US Zone and was instrumental in leading the organization toward consumer centric growth and transformational change.
Over the course of her nearly three decades at Coca-Cola, she held various leadership roles including Corporate Vice President, Chief Procurement Officer, and Vice President, Commercial Products Supply leading a multi-billion-dollar global supply chain. Prior to that, Ms. Nicosia held progressive operations leadership roles at PepsiCo and Kraft Foods.
Nicosia serves as a director of Foot Locker, Inc. and as a member of the Georgia Institute of Technology Advisory Board. Ms. Nicosia holds a Bachelor of Science, Marketing from The Ohio State University and a Master of Science, Management from Georgia Institute of Technology.
Fred Jasser
Senior Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer
Fred is at the helm of our strategic growth initiatives. He leads Hearthside’s path forward of continued expansion through internal and external value creation channels. Backed by over 20 years of experience in financial leadership, mergers & acquisitions, including leadership roles at BDT Capital Partners in Chicago, Sears Holding Corporation, and the Investment Banking Division at Goldman Sachs & Co. Fred also spent time at Wasserstein Perella Group, Inc. and PriceWaterhouseCoopers, LLP. Mr. Jasser earned a BA from Northwestern University.
Lee Boyce
Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Lee joined Hearthside in September 2021 to lead the company’s Finance, Accounting and IT functions. He has over 30 years of financial leadership experience in global manufacturing organizations with 20 years in the food industry. Most recently, he served as the CFO at Werner, and American Hotel Register. Prior to that he spent 20 years at Kraft Heinz in progressive leadership roles including the CFO of the Beverages division. Lee earned his MBA at the University of Illinois, Chicago.
Rich Scalise
Chairman and Founder
Rich Scalise founded Hearthside Food Solutions in 2009 upon the premise that the food contract manufacturing industry was ripe for reinvention. Rich Scalise brings decades of food industry executive experience, in bakery, protein, dairy, and contract manufacturing to this role. During his career, Rich has served as President of Ralcorp Frozen Bakery Products and as President and COO of ConAgra Refrigerated Foods Division, where he grew revenue to $3 Billion during his tenure, among other executive assignments. Rich Scalise is also a previous Chairman of the American Bakers Association; he sits on numerous boards and is active in multiple industry initiatives and associations.