During the California Grocers Association annual meeting on Nov. 30, outgoing board chair Renee Amen passed the gavel to Dennis Darling, who will serve as the next CGA board chair for 2023.

Darling and his wife, Ruth, have owned and operated Foods Etc. in Clearlake and Susanville for 25 years.

At the end of 2024 the couple is retiring, and their daughter and son-in-law will take over the business.

In the meantime, Darling is going to step back from the day-to-day operations and take on a more strategic role while he serves as CGA board chair.

“The industry has been really good for me and my family, and this is an opportunity for me to give back,” Darling told CGA. “And you know what, I just love the idea of being able to communicate with all these different grocers and vendors, too. There are so many outstanding people who are involved in CGA and I’m just really proud to be a part of that group.”

As a longtime owner of an independent grocery store, Darling is especially familiar with the grocery industry from the perspective of an independent business. He has experienced many challenges over the years, most recently with the challenges of COVID compliance and labor issues.

But Darling also believes wholeheartedly in the benefits of running his own business, noting that it’s been a rewarding experience that allowed his family to be an integral part of the communities they serve.

Prior to his membership and work with CGA, Darling was active in the California Independent Grocers Association, or CIGA, which represented the voice of independent grocers for many years.

In 2013, Darling and another and Bob Parriott began working with CGA to discuss a merger. CIGA was struggling with leadership but had funds to contribute, and CGA was eager to add more independents to its membership.

Thanks to the work of Darling and a handful of others, the two organizations officially merged in mid-2014. The move strengthened the grocery industry in California, boosting advocacy efforts and creating a more diverse member pool. Since then, CGA has been a strong voice for independent grocers in addition to larger chains and companies.

“In the eight years since that merger, funds from CIGA have been used for education in helping independent grocers with training and compliance,” Darling said.

CGA also established the Independent Operators Committee, which Darling said has been integral to ensuring small independents are well-represented within CGA. The committee meets twice a year and supports independent grocers with issues like compliance, hazardous waste disposal, workers’ comp and labor and employment issues.

“It’s been a great merger. I think it’s been really good for both entities and frankly I don’t even really think about it much anymore, we’re just one family,” Darling said. “Ron is excellent to represent everybody. Not just the small chains but the independents.”

As the grocery industry faces ongoing challenges from inflation, labor and supply chain, Darling expects 2023 to be a busy year.

“If we had even one of those at a time it would be very challenging, but to try and deal with them all at the same time has really made the business much more difficult,” he said.

During his time as board chair, Darling also wants to focus more on advocacy at the local level for both chains and independent stores — in addition to CGA’s already active efforts at the state and national levels.

“The independents are really well-positioned to advocate on behalf of the industry at the local level,” he said. “They know who their local elected officials are, they know the sheriffs, they know who the local regulatory people are, and so I think they'll be a big help in that.”

With the support of CGA, Darling is confident all CGA member companies are in good hands. Darling notes the outstanding CGA staff and their efforts in government relations and communicating with members, as well as a successful lineup of training and events that are always “first-class.”

While there’s a full calendar ahead of Darling as CGA chair next year, there will also be some fun. Darling notes that CGA’s training symposium will take place in Hawaii in January, an event that was carried over from CIGA and that CGA happily embraced.

“Again, I’m just really proud to be part of that and be able to give back to the industry that’s been so good to us,” he said.

Jessica Love works for the California Grocers Association.