• by Teresa Buyikian , August 24, 2023

The Multicultural Foodservice & Hospitality Alliance (MFHA) today announced that Gerry A. Fernandez, its president and founder, will be retiring after 27 years at the head of the organization. He will leave his post at the end of 2023.  MFHA will conduct a national search for his successor.

Beginning next year, Fernandez will support MFHA in an advisory role.

MFHA has worked with restaurant, foodservice and lodging businesses improve their cultural competency, create diverse and inclusive work environments and attract more diverse talent, particularly in leadership positions.

Fernandez himself developed a supplier diversity directory and conducted the industry's first diverse practices survey. In 2022, MFHA, the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation (NRAEF) and Cornell University issued a new DEI Report outlining the effectiveness of DEI practices among restaurant employees.

An outcome of the report was MFHA's launch of ELEVATE, a toolkit that restaurants can use to build a successful DEI program.   

This year, MFHA is hosting a series of Leadership Roundtables for MFHA members and non-members to learn more about current DEI trends, issues and challenges facing the food-service and hospitality industry.