IAD’s Health Food Company Board thanks long-standing director, votes new operations

November 16, 2015 | Miami, Florida, United States | Libna Stevens/IAD

Inter-American Division’s Health Food Company Board members thanked long-time director Joel Zukovski for his outstanding leadership during the last 27 years.

Joel Zukovski was director of the Inter-American Health Food Company for 27 years. He retires with 52 years of church service. Image by Keila Trejo/IAD

“Thank you for how you have led the Health Food Company across the church in Inter-America,” said Pastor Israel Leito, president of the church in Inter-America.

“The health food company was organized at the division level decades ago because all factories were struggling and were on the way to bankruptcy,” explained Pastor Leito. “There was an improvement at the start but it made a turn overnight when Joel took control of this ministry of healthy foods,” explained Pastor Leito.

Since 1988, Zukovski moved to the Inter-American Division (IAD) headquarters in Miami, Florida, and led, along with branch managers, the 14 factories and 14 distributing centers to tremendous growth across the IAD territory from Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, to Colombia and Venezuela, church leaders said.

“I’m thankful that the administration will continue providing assistance in this very unique only-seen program in the Adventist Church around the world,” said Zukovski. “We not only have large [food] factories, but smaller too and the Division will continue to ensure these continue to grow.” Zukovski retires with the Adventist Church with 52 years of service.

Board members voted to appoint IAD’s treasurer Filiberto Verduzco as the general manager of the Inter-American Health Food Company (IAHFC) based in Miami, Florida, and reelected Juan Martin Meza as finance manager and Adolfo Ruiz as production manager to work in Mexico, for the next five years.

Also, board members voted on IAHFC’s budget for 2016 and appointed Clifford Barlgobin as manager of College Health Foods in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad.

In addition, board members voted on a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Inter-American Division and the unions to operate the IAHFC. The documented detailed the basis for operation, administration and decision-making of the IAHFC and the branches and subsidiaries to fulfill the Church’s mission.

For years, the factories and distribution centers have played a role in supporting Adventist education, providing student work program, and supporting evangelistic and health promotion activities in the communities where the factories and branches are located.

The mission of the IAHFC is to promote the manufacture, distribution and sale of health foods within the IAD territory, in order to promote a health reform message, through teachings regarding a healthy diet.