Baldor Specialty Foods mourns cofounder Andrew Balducci

Andrew Balducci, whose name forms half of Baldor Specialty Foods, passed away March 22 at the age of 92.

The son of Louis Balducci, Andrew Balducci not only cofounded Baldor but helped shape the company’s brand. He is credited with featuring snowy white silver dollar mushrooms from Pennsylvania farms for 39 cents a pound, which became a major draw for early Balducci’s customers.

Julia della Croce, a food journalist who interviewed Balducci for a feature, said he introduced other vegetables and ingredients to the U. S., produce that consumers now take for granted. One example is cime di rapa – “broccoli rabe,” a bitter green of the Italian south.

“He went back to Corato, where he was born, and paid a farmer he knew to grow it for him and ship it to Balducci’s in New York,” della Croce said.

Back in New York City, Balducci’s ‘s mother cooked it in the shop for takeout and it flew out of the deli counter. When a California grower who supplied Andy with broccoli visited the shop one day and saw people lining up for the broccoli rabe at the cooked foods counter, Balducci told him he should grow it for him in California. The grower did and it eventually became wildly popular in the U.S.

“Andy had old world grit and street smarts, but also, charm and a certain sophistication that enabled him to hobnob with James Beard and all the celebrities of his day who patronized his shop because they found things there that no one else carried,” she said.

Balducci’s success didn’t just come from introducing new produce to the U.S. market. His niece, Emily Balducci, who works at Baldor in the company’s marketing department, remembered her uncle’s work ethic.

In an article she wrote for Baldor entitled “Christmas Eve at Balducci’s, circa 1985,” she noted that, “Andy would make a beeline for the produce department garbage cans when he walked in Christmas Eve morning. Despite the crowds and the chaos (or maybe because of them) he felt compelled to investigate any possible produce waste. Though he ran a very tight ship, he knew he had to be physically present on this busiest day of the year.”

Andy Balducci eventually took over ownership of the company, while his son-in-law, Kevin Murphy, headed up the Baldor division, working to gain market share in a competitive wholesale market. In 1991 Kevin established Baldor as an independent company, moving the warehouse to a facility on Borden Avenue in Long Island City, taking with him a handful of Balducci employees.

“They were tremendous risk takers who had the courage to make their big move when the timing was right. Without Andy Balducci, there would be no Baldor,” said TJ Murphy, CEO of Baldor Specialty Foods. “My biggest challenge has been to not only live up to their legacy, but to continue to take risks as they did to keep our businesses growing and relevant in today’s food-centric culture. He was an amazing person who thrived off interaction, and I will forever implement his thoughts and views as I run and grow the company.”

The business was sold in 1998 and Andy and his wife Nina spent their retirement between their home in East Williston on Long Island, and on Paradise Island in the Bahamas. Andy is survived by his wife, two daughters, Marta and Andrea, six grandchildren and four great grandchildren.