MARSHFIELD, WI – Oct 31, 2023 | Nelson-Jameson, a leading food processing distributor, announced that its President, Mike Rindy, was recognized by “Family BusinessMagazine”as a CEO to Watch, Class of 2023. The annual award recognizes “family and non-family chief executives whose exceptional leadership has put their businesses in a strong position for future generations.” A feature spotlighting Rindy will appear in both the November/December 2023 print edition of “Family BusinessMagazine” and the online edition.
“I couldn’t be more honored to receive this accolade from “Family Business Magazine,” one of the foremost publications for executive leaders,” says Rindy. “I’m especially appreciative of the award’s focus on leadership for the benefit of the next generation. This is a core principle of Nelson-Jameson’s culture, and I’m proud to carry its legacy forward.”
Rindy joined Nelson-Jameson in 2020. In his three-year tenure, he has steered the company through the pandemic and supply chain challenges, overseen expansion to new cities and markets, and sustained a longstanding company ethos of operating in an ethical manner with respect for people, the community, and the environment. The company was founded more than 75 years ago and has operated continuously as a family business ever since.
“Mike Rindy has been a tremendous asset to our organization, in part because of because of his unique ability to humbly inspire our employees, to empathize and show compassion, and to empower people to thrive,” says Adam Nelson, a fourth-generation owner of Nelson-Jameson who currently serves as the Chairman of Nelson-Jameson. “He has infused new energy and ideas into the company while honoring our family business values, and we congratulate him on this extremely well-deserved recognition.”
Family Business was launched more than 30 years ago, with the goal of supporting leadership teams in the unique position of managing businesses and family dynamics at the same time. The magazine is published by MLR Media, an organization that utilizes digital platforms, magazines, and events to provide relevant insights to public and private company directors, leaders and owners of multigenerational family businesses and C-suite executives.
by Steve Funk | Senior Cheese Technologist at Nelson-Jameson
Cultures and enzymes are biological catalysts for dairy product production, but they’re also catalysts for the dairy industry as a whole. These hard-working elements work quietly behind the scenes to strengthen the industry’s brand reputation, increase dairy product market share, and delight consumers.
As the industry continues to adapt to changes and face new and long-standing challenges, cultures and enzymes help dairy advocates respond with answers. The trend toward plant-based alternatives is answered with vegetarian enzymes. Interest in health and wellness is answered with cultures that stimulate the probiotic benefits of yogurts, kefirs, and other cultured dairy. Here are five ways that cultures and enzymes are helping dairy processors.
Consumer Trends: Year after year, dairy processors aim to strike a balance between tradition and innovation. Consumers count on the availability of their favorite dairy products, but they also want new flavors and formats. Cultures and enzymes keep consumers happy by providing consistently produced dairy staples as well as inventive products that introduce new tastes and textures. They can also impact how well a cheese melts, browns, or blends, providing additional variety to culinary usages.
Food Safety: The use of cultures and enzymes is increasing because of its success in maintaining the integrity of dairy products and enhancing food safety. New bioprotective cultures can replace chemical preservatives, providing consumers and suppliers with preservative-free products that also have better shelf stability. Of course, cultures and enzymes are not a substitute for other safety protocols, such as knowing your milk source, understanding plant sanitation, and carefully following all steps in a cleaning process. Still, ongoing advances in cultures and enzymes allow dairy processors to inhibit yeast and mold growth, prevent spoilage, and better protect their products.
Health and Wellness: Ongoing demand for the gut-health benefits of probiotics continues to keep yogurt at the top of cultured dairy sales. Cultures and enzymes also support other health-driven consumer preferences such as reducing lactose or increasing organic consumption. Beyond product features, the health and wellness benefits of cultured dairy enhance awareness of and interest in dairy as a category and its place in the famous food pyramid.
Food innovation: Industry scientists continue to find new pathways for cultures and enzymes. Product developers can use a 50-year-old, patented culture and/or a novel culture developed within the last year to expand a product line – the old and new work in tandem with each other. Technical experts are creating new avenues for culture and enzyme usage, such as the use of non-traditional cultures to transform the effects in long-standing cheeses. Dairy processing operations benefit from culture and enzyme innovations as well. They can be added to help accelerate production or make it easier to utilize equipment.
Brand Strength: As dairy processors utilize cultures and enzymes to enhance product uniqueness, satisfy consumers, and find creative solutions to challenges, a bonus result is industry brand strength. Consumers stay engaged with a food & beverage category when it’s both consistent and innovative, and fosters trust in food safety and health benefits. In turn, this brand strength bolsters marketing and selling opportunities.
Cultures and enzymes continue to be the workhorses of cultured dairy products, but they’re also indirect lobbyists for the industry. Dairy processors can benefit from continued focus on the role of cultures and enzymes in all aspects of production.
If you need more insight on enzymes for your dairy product production, contact the experts at Nelson-Jameson (www.nelsonjameson.com).
About Steve Funk
Steve Funk is Senior Cheese Technologist at Nelson-Jameson. As a passionate dairy industry veteran with more than 40 years of experience, he provides customers with advice on ingredients, production processes, and manufacturing improvements to enhance cheese and fermented dairy product results. His innovative approach to quality cheese-making has helped dozens of customers create and launch unique cheese recipes that are market favorites today. Steve is an active member of numerous dairy industry associations and serves as a WDPA representative on the prestigious Master Cheesemakers Board. He supports the next generation of dairy innovators by serving as a NE-DBIC Dairy Processor Expansion Grant reviewer and a mentor for its Northeastern Dairy Product Innovation Competition, an inaugural program managed by Cornell University’s Center for Regional Economic Advancement and the Northeast Dairy Foods Research Center. He holds a B.S. in Dairy Science and Animal Health from the University of Vermont. When not at work, he enjoys skiing, kayaking, gardening, and spending time with his wife of 38 years, Carla, and their daughter and grandson.
Nelson-Jameson is a proud member of the Innovation Center for US Dairy. The Center and its members have a common goal “to advance a shared social responsibility platform and demonstrate U.S. dairy’s collective commitment to provide the world responsibly produced dairy foods that nourish people, strengthen communities and foster a sustainable future.”
Nelson-Jameson and the Center have a combined passion for furthering food safety in our nation. Recently, the Center published a terrific food safety resource for the dairy industry that includes numerous Spanish language materials. Resources to take advantage of include: interactive training courses for artisan ice cream and cheesemakers, food safety plan writing assistance, training support, pathogen guidance documents, and much more.
Maxiren® XDS and Nelson-Jameson make a GOUDA couple!
You FETA BRIE-LIEVE IT!
And yes, we are together for the long haul.
Maxiren® XDS is a fermentation produced chymosin (FPC) that protects, preserves, and optimizes the required coagulant in the cheese process helping cheese reach its full potential of GRATE taste and big smiles. There is an increase of flexibility in the cheese production when Maxiren® XDS is involved. This extraordinary coagulant has a high specificity which lowers the amount of coagulant required, and aids in slowing the breakdown of cheese proteins, resulting in enhanced cheese textures. The enriched texture maintains a longer shelf life which allows shredding, slicing, and dicing to be smooth, natural, and more efficient through different cheese stages.
Just the facts, (Pepper) Jack!
Maxiren® XDS manages whey protein. It will be inactive after pasteurization at temperatures between 66° to 73°C, therefore reducing concerns over residual rennet left behind.
Strengthens the stretch! Long, thin strands hold better without breaking into thinner strings. Also promotes a reduction in browning and upholds an exceptional cheese melt.
A chymosin preparation derived from a selected strain of the dairy yeast Kluyveromyces lactis.
Kosher and Halal approved.
Not a GMO.
Suitable for vegans and vegetarians.
Allows for easier shredding, dicing, and slicing of cheese.
For more information, please give us a call! Our Ingredient Product Specialists will be happy to discuss your current processes, and work with you in your facility to suggest the right product for your application.
Go ahead—throw in the Maxiren® XDS—afterall, age is only important when it comes to cheese!
Today we are celebrating 74 years of Nelson-Jameson being a successful family-owned and operated supplier to the food, dairy, and beverage industries! Our journey began in 1947 when Earl Nelson, his father Ted, Herb Jameson, and Bob Dougherty founded Nelson-Jameson as a dairy equipment and supply business in Toluca, IL. Their goal was to serve as a comprehensive resource for dairy plants, but they soon discovered that their Illinois location isn’t ideal. From there, it was decided upon that the headquarters of the business would be moved to Marshfield, WI—the heart of dairy production.
Today, Nelson-Jameson is now run by the fourth generation of the Nelson family. Earl’s grandson, Adam is Chairman of the Board, and his granddaughter Amanda is a senior executive as well. Over the years, Nelson-Jameson has expanded by adding distribution centers in California, Idaho, Pennsylvania, and Texas, plus a sales office in Illinois. The business has also expanded its product offerings to meet the needs of food, dairy, and beverage plants—becoming the supplier of choice in all 50 states, as well as many foreign countries.
Nelson-Jameson has played an important role in supporting the dairy, food, and beverage industries for the past 74 years. From sourcing over 50,000 products to developing over 10 different food safety programs to expanding to six different locations, we’ve brought a lot of success with us through these years, and we can’t wait to see what the future holds. Your safe, quality food is our business!
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