Zaccanelli resigns as Hofmann CEO, Flook assumes interim role

SYRACUSE — Frank Zaccanelli, who had been serving as CEO of the Hofmann Sausage Company, “has decided to resign from his duties,” according to a joint press statement released by the company and Zaccanelli.

Hofmann has named Rusty Flook, the firm’s longtime president, as acting CEO.

The Zaccanelli resignation comes along with the settlement of a lawsuit that investors in Hofmann, including Syracuse University basketball coach Jim Boeheim and the Oneida Indian Nation, had brought against the company, according to other media reports.

Zaccanelli was sued on allegations that he received company reimbursement for $34,000 spent on an “apparent girlfriend,” according to a story by The Dallas Morning News.

In the joint statement, Zaccanelli, a Syracuse native who lives in Dallas, said, “Over the last 9 months, we have set the stage for the growth and expansion of the company’s business.  Once this dispute became public I answered the allegations and I leave with head held high and my family intact.  This now allows me to concentrate on my other businesses that I will have the time to grow and to spend more time with my family,”

Zaccanelli is the founder of the Zaccanelli Food Group, which is the parent company of Hofmann. Zaccanelli told The Dallas Morning News that he no longer has any connection to Zaccanelli Food Group and he denied all the allegations against him.

Zaccanelli continues to serve as chairman and CEO of Scala Real Estate partners, a Dallas–based real-estate investment and development company.

Hofmann said in its statement that it believes it’s poised for “growth in new markets in the coming years.”

The original investors are remaining in place, the Hoffman statement said. They include Phil Romano, restaurateur who’s best known as the founder of Fuddrucker’s and Romano’s Macaroni Grill restaurant chains.

Romano is also spearheading the expansion of the Hofmann-restaurant concept, including the first restaurant that recently opened in Dallas.

Plans call for opening additional restaurants, the Hofmann statement said, and increasing the availability of Hofmann products through new retailers.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com