Greg Kurkijian and Tammy Gainey bring decades of produce leadership to IFCO as double-digit growth continues
IFCO, the leading global provider of reusable packaging solutions for fresh products, has appointed two industry veterans to its North American retail sales group. Greg Kurkjian is joining IFCO as Vice President of Retail Sales and Tammy Gainey is joining as Director – Walmart.
“Greg and Tammy are excellent additions to our Retail Sales team and will make an immediate impact for us in the marketplace,” said Dan Walsh, President, IFCO RPCs North America. “Their experience, network of business relationships and understanding of the industry will ensure our present growth trajectory continues.”
Kurkjian is responsible for building and strengthening IFCO’s retail partnerships in order to execute IFCO’s growth strategy. He brings more than 22 years of produce industry sales and management experience, most recently leading Retail Sales at Mann Packing Company, Salinas, CA. Kurkjian has also served in sales leadership roles at HealthPro Brands, Ready Pac, Club Chef and Fresh Express, is a graduate of United Fresh Leadership Class 7 and currently serves as Chairman of the United Fresh Leadership Alumni Board. He received his MBA from Loyola University Chicago and a BS from Miami University of Ohio.
Gainey is responsible for increasing RPC penetration at Walmart in line with the company’s growth strategy. She brings more than 15 years of experience creating and leading teams in sales, logistics, supply chain and packaging, most recently as Director of National Accounts – Walmart at Ready Pac Foods. Prior to Ready Pac, Gainey spent two years with IFCO as Director of Central and East Region Sales, where she was instrumental in development of the IFCO RPC program with Walmart. In addition, she served as CHEP’s National Account Sales Manager early in her career.
With more than 200 million Reusable Plastic Containers (RPCs) in circulation in 33 countries, IFCO is the leading provider of reusable containers to the fresh food sector worldwide. IFCO handles more than 1 billion RPC transfers each year, transporting the containers to fresh produce growers and other users and collecting them from retail distribution centers. After each use, IFCO RPCs are folded, collected and shipped to one of IFCO’s 48 service facilities, where they are sanitized using the latest food safety processes and prepared for re-use. IFCO launched its first RPCs pool in 1992 and continues to expand into new markets and with new product innovations. IFCO is part of Brambles Limited.