HOUSTON, Jan. 17, 2006 (PRIMEZONE) -- SYSCO Corporation (NYSE:SYY) announced today that James T. (Tommy) Dail has joined the company's Executive Development Program. Mr. Dail, who most recently served as president and chief operating officer of The IJ Company, a broadline foodservice distributor located in Knoxville, Tennessee, will begin his new duties effective immediately.
Mr. Dail, 49, is a 34-year industry veteran. He began his career in retail grocery, serving in various positions including store manager and buyer before being named director of purchasing at Institution Food House, a division of the Alex Lee Company (Hickory, NC), in 1987. Mr. Dail joined Clark Foodservice, Inc. (South Bend, IN) in 1989 and was named general manager in 1990. In 1991 he was hired as market president of Kraft Foodservice's Jackson, Mississippi operation. In 1996 following that company's divestiture from Philip Morris, Mr. Dail was named president of the Mid-South Division for the newly formed Alliant Foodservice. That division was later merged with two others to form the Southeast Division and in 1998 he was selected as president of that group. Mr. Dail was appointed to his most recent position at The IJ Company in 2000.
Mr. Dail was born in Newport News, Virginia, and raised in Williamsburg, Virginia. He is a 1979 graduate of Emory & Henry College, located in Emory, Virginia, where he graduated cum laude and received a bachelor of arts degree in economics. He and his wife, Karen, have two daughters and a son and reside in Knoxville, Tennessee.
SYSCO is the largest foodservice marketing and distribution organization in North America, providing food and related products and services to approximately 390,000 restaurants, healthcare and educational facilities, lodging establishments and other foodservice customers. The company generated sales of $30.3 billion for the fiscal year 2005 that ended July 2, 2005. SYSCO's operations are located throughout the United States and Canada and include broadline companies, specialty produce and custom-cut meat operations, Asian foodservice, hotel supply operations and chain restaurant distribution subsidiaries. For more information about SYSCO visit the company's Internet home page at www.sysco.com.
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