BUSINESS NOTES

摘要

Richard L. Knowlton, formerly the president, CEO and chairman of the board of Hormel Foods Corp. died Feb. 1, after losing a battle with complications related to Alzheimer's disease. Knowlton was 86 years old. A native of Austin, Minnesota, Knowlton worked at Hormel as a during high school and while attending the Univ. of Colorado, where he earned a bachelor's degree in 1954. He joined the company that same year, working as a merchandising manager in Fremont, Nebraska. He also served in the US Air Force for two years before transferring to Austin in 1959, where he was manager of the Minnesota route car division. Knowlton advanced through the ranks and was appointed general manager of the company's Austin plant in 1969. In the next 10 years he served as vice president of operations, joined Hormel's board of directors and was promoted to vice president of the operations group as well as being named to the executive committee. He assumed the roles of president and chief operations officer in 1979 and finally, was named CEO and chairman in 1981, retiring as CEO in 1993 and chairman in 1995.