Herb Lotman, 80, husband, father, successful entrepreneur, and philanthropist, died Thursday, May 8th from complications of heart failure.  Mr. Lotman was the founder of Keystone Foods, supplier of McDonald’s burger patties, poultry and fish.  Today, Keystone Foods is one of the world’s largest food companies.

A Philadelphia native, Herb Lotman began his career in the food industry with his family’s wholesale beef business.  In the late 1960’s Mr. Lotman and his partners pioneered cryogenics for McDonald’s and developed a mass-production system for the manufacture of frozen hamburgers.  By the late 60’s the company was selling its new and innovative product to the Golden Arches.  Keystone Foods developed and provided the first total distribution concept in the McDonald’s system, enabling restaurant owners to save time and focus on customer service.  They were also instrumental in helping develop the Chicken McNugget in the1980’s. Lotman built the company over 40 years from scratch to one that was generating more than $5 billion in sales annually. Keystone opened operations in over 15 countries around the world and was rated 45 on Forbes’ list of America’s Largest Private Companies in 2010.

Although he often said, “I’m just a butcher,” Mr. Lotman was an inspiration to many generations.