James Leprino, who took his family’s side business from a small neighborhood cheese shop to the estimated $3.6 billion company it is today, the world’s largest producer of mozzarella, died last month at age 87.
Leprino Foods, which is changing its name to just Leprino, did not say where or how he died.
James Leprino’s company caught the wave of rising pizza popularity, especially the ascendance of national chains, in the U.S. in the 1960s, shortly after he incorporated the company.
Those chains appreciated the reliability of service and consistent quality of Leprino mozzarella, and soon Leprino was supplying 85% of the cheese for companies such as Domino’s, Papa Johns and Pizza Hut. Leprino Foods developed several innovations along the way.
The New York Times noted the company has more than 50 patents for cheese making; reduced the aging process for mozzarella from 14 days to four hours; created a preservative mist to prevent crumbling; and adopted quick-freezing methods that had previously been used for peas.
About the Author
Dave Fusaro
Editor in Chief
Dave Fusaro has served as editor in chief of Food Processing magazine since 2003. Dave has 30 years experience in food & beverage industry journalism and has won several national ASBPE writing awards for his Food Processing stories. Dave has been interviewed on CNN, quoted in national newspapers and he authored a 200-page market research report on the milk industry. Formerly an award-winning newspaper reporter who specialized in business writing, he holds a BA in journalism from Marquette University. Prior to joining Food Processing, Dave was Editor-In-Chief of Dairy Foods and was Managing Editor of Prepared Foods.