WASHINGTON, DC — July 7, 2004 — On September 22, the food retail, wholesale and foodservice distribution industries will present the Thomas Jefferson Awards to members of the United States Congress who have worked to promote economic prosperity and free enterprise. This year, the Food Marketing Institute (FMI) and the International Foodservice Distributors Association (IFDA) will present the awards jointly. Respectively, the two trade organizations represent the food retail and wholesale industry and the foodservice distribution industry.

     
The awards have been presented biannually since 1992 to members of the U.S. House of Representatives who have demonstrated support for issues important to the two industries. The 2004 program is being expanded to include recognition of members of the U.S. Senate.

     
The Thomas Jefferson Award for Distinguished Service will also be presented. This award will be given to one House member and one Senator, each of whom has uniquely distinguished himself or herself though their vigorous support for the economic principles on which the award is based. Past recipients of the Award for Distinguished Service include Reps. Roy Blunt, Anne Northup, Henry Bonilla, John Boehner and Tom DeLay.

     
The program was inspired by the philosophies and writings of Thomas Jefferson, who in his first inaugural address noted, “A wise and frugal government…which shall leave men otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned. This is the sum of good government.”

     
The custom-designed award features a sculpted replica of Thomas Jefferson framed by the four “pillars of prosperity” — agriculture, commerce, navigation and manufacturing — all enterprises that Jefferson felt were crucial to the success of the American economy.