What is IFDA?
To access a comprehensive overview of IFDA, see the IFDA Report to Members 2010.

IFDA's members operate more than 700 distribution facilities and represent annual sales of more than $110 billion. These companies help make the food away from home industry possible, delivering food and other related products to restaurants and institutions — from the local pizzeria or burger shop to your favorite Italian restaurant or white tablecloth establishment, from nursing homes and hospitals to military mess halls and school cafeterias.

IFDA provides research, educational opportunities, and business forums to its members that make them more competitive. In the United States, IFDA also provides important representation on Capitol Hill, sharing the perspective of leading foodservice distributors with lawmakers to shape the legislative and regulatory process.

The IFDA Board of Directors
The IFDA Board of Directors includes leaders from a broad cross-section of the industry from regional to international companies. The IFDA Board of Directors provides leadership on critical industry issues and sets priorities for the association to help members succeed.

Government Relations and Industry Relations
IFDA provides support through industry programs, government relations, and industry relations. IFDA's government relations efforts focus on Federal level legislative and regulatory issues, keeping members appraised of developments that will affect the industry and lobbying on behalf of the foodservice distribution community. IFDA's industry relations efforts include research and education efforts supporting the foodservice supply channel, representation in joint industry projects, and forums that allow foodservice distributors and suppliers to advance common initiatives.

Our Members Drive the Association
Members of IFDA are involved in association planning and execution. To make sure that executives are aware of appropriate activities applicable to their area of responsibility, IFDA asks for member company contacts in all major operational areas. In addition, industry executives from various disciplines serve on IFDA committees. These committees play an important role in developing education and in addressing industry priorities.

A Brief History of IFDA
1906: A group of food wholesalers concerned with advancing legislation to ensure food safety founded NWGA (National Wholesale Grocers' Association). The association had two primary areas of interest: presenting food distributor views to government and serving as a social forum. There was, at that time, no technical services provided to members, and members provided little more to their customers than products for purchase.

1933: Formed by food distributors from the Northeast and Midwest, NWGA merged with the American Wholesale Grocers' Association, a group serving mostly the Southeast. The new group was renamed the National-American Wholesale Grocers' Association (NAWGA).

1969: NAWGA merged with the U.S. Wholesale Grocers Association and that organization's “Institutional Food Distributors of America (IFDA)” became NAWGA's foodservice division. As IFDAs membership expanded outside of the U.S., the name was changed to the International Foodservice Distributors Association.

1996: The association's Board of Governors voted to adopt a new name, Food Distributors International (NAWGA/IFDA), which more directly described the overall membership of the association.

2002: IFDA’s Board of Directors votes to establish a freestanding trade organization dedicated to the unique needs of foodservice distributors. IFDA began operations as an independent entity on January 1, 2003.

Today: IFDA continues to work diligently to advance the interests of foodservice distributors through government relations, industry relations, education, and research. We exist to help our members succeed!