Baking & Snack - February 2024 - 24
BAKING HALL OF FAME
Robert Benton's impact on Flowers Foods
and the industry goes beyond simply
designing and building bakeries.
by Charlotte Atchley
R
Robert L. Benton is a man who has made his mark on
the baking industry, both in plant design and people.
Throughout his 40-year career, exclusively at Flowers
Foods, Thomasville, Ga., Mr. Benton oversaw the design
and construction of 10 new facilities as well as the redesign
and update of nearly all of the company's 46 bakeries.
His impact on Flowers Foods, which grew from a
regional to a national company during Mr. Benton's tenure,
cannot be overstated when every facility bears his
signature designs meant to improve efficiencies of process
and operations.
Mr. Benton's career began in 1980 in Flowers Foods'
bakery in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on the production room
floor. He worked his way up to plant management and
into the corporate level before retiring in 2023 as executive
vice president of network optimization. Having a
hand in the plant as well as corporate management, Mr.
Benton has certainly had an impact on Flowers Foods
beyond just line and facility design. In a letter recommending
Mr. Benton to the Hall of Fame, A. Ryals
McMullian, Flowers' chairman, chief executive officer
and president, and George Deese, a member of Flowers'
board of directors, wrote:
" Robert's inspirational leadership and personal commitment
to excellence are legendary here at Flowers
and across our industry. He is a curious, confident,
passionate and approachable leader. Over the years, we
have been extremely fortunate to be the beneficiary of
his unique combination of vision, engineering expertise
24 Baking & Snack February 2024 / www.bakingbusiness.com
and superior management skills as we added plants and
expanded our scope of business from a regional to a national
baked foods company. "
Maybe more lasting than his line and facility design
work, however, is the lasting impact Mr. Benton has
had on people in the baking industry, whether through
his work on various committees and associations or
the long-lasting relationships he's built with associates
of Flowers Foods and its vendors. Baking & Snack
Publisher James Boddicker noted in his recommendation
letter that at every bakery he's walked with Mr.
Benton, he remembers not only associates' names but
their families as well.
Matt Stanford, vice president, Bettendorf Stanford, reflected
on his experiences with Mr. Benton.
" I can look around at BEMA meetings and sit across
from suppliers - sometimes competitors - and see
how he has shaped their careers, " he stated. " I would hop
on conference calls or pick up the phone and see how his
mentoring and his thought processes have shaped the
lives of so many at Flowers Foods. "
Those relationships are what Mr. Benton loved most
about his career as he reflected upon retirement.
" Most people who know me would expect me to say
that I love building bakeries, and it's true, I do, " he said.
" But that doesn't come before the joy that I have received
from building teams and the friendships I have gained
within the company and outside of it, especially with our
vendors. Those will last for a lifetime. "
Illustrations by Brent Engstrom
http://www.bakingbusiness.com
Baking & Snack - February 2024
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Baking & Snack - February 2024
Baking & Snack - February 2024 - Intro
Baking & Snack - February 2024 - 1
Baking & Snack - February 2024 - 2
Baking & Snack - February 2024 - 3
Baking & Snack - February 2024 - 4
Baking & Snack - February 2024 - 5
Baking & Snack - February 2024 - 6
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