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Italian Foods Processor Armanino Foods of Distinction Appoints New President, CEO

April 24, 2025
Deanna Jurgens brings leadership experience with Bonduelle Americas, Beyond Meat and PepsiCo/Frito-Lay to the Italian specialty foods processor.

Armanino Foods of Distinction Inc., a manufacturer and marketer of frozen Italian specialty food items for foodservice, retail and industrial markets, has announced that Deanna Jurgens will be its new president and chief executive officer, effective May 12, 2025. She also joins the board of directors.

Jurgens most recently served as chief sales officer for Bonduelle Americas, where she led the $650 million fresh business, guiding it to its largest share gains in five years through a strategy of customer acquisition, innovation, expansion and cost management. Previously, Jurgens was president of North America and global chief growth officer for Beyond Meat, where she developed global partnerships with McDonald’s and Yum Brands, and worked to expand the Beyond Meat brand in the U.S. through a joint venture in plant-based jerky with PepsiCo.

Jurgens also spent 16 years with PepsiCo earlier in her career, including time leading the operations of Frito-Lay’s largest region. She is expected to lead Armanino Foods of Distinction into and through its next phase of growth.

Armanino Foods produces a wide variety of sauces, cheese shakers, frozen pastas and meatballs.

About the Author

Andy Hanacek | Senior Editor

Andy Hanacek has covered meat, poultry, bakery and snack foods as a B2B editor for nearly 20 years, and has toured hundreds of processing plants and food companies, sharing stories of innovation and technological advancement throughout the food supply chain. In 2018, he won a Folio:Eddie Award for his unique "From the Editor's Desk" video blogs, and he has brought home additional awards from Folio and ASBPE over the years. In addition, Hanacek led the Meat Industry Hall of Fame for several years and was vice president of communications for We R Food Safety, a food safety software and consulting company.

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