NEWPORT, MINNESOTA, US — Joel Hoffa, a past president of the International Association of Operative Millers (IAOM) whose milling career spanned nearly 50 years, died Dec. 17 after a lengthy cancer battle. He was 67.

Hoffa served as IAOM president in 2013-14 and was the honorary chair of the association’s 2022 conference and expo in Minneapolis, Minnesota, US. An IAOM member since 1982, Hoffa was a longtime member of the association’s technical committee. In 2018, he received the IAOM Distinguished Service Award for his exemplary service to the organization and the milling industry.

Jeff Gwirtz, a milling industry consultant who met Hoffa when they were in the milling science program at Kansas State University (KSU) in the 1970s, praised Hoffa for his “outstanding command of detailed milling technical knowledge” and for having shared that knowledge with millers over the years.

“I have the greatest respect for his knowledge and understanding,” Gwirtz said. “I often sought his counsel and was never disappointed.”

A native of Minneapolis, Minnesota, US, Hoffa grew up five blocks from the Atkinson Mill owned by ADM. However, he didn't step foot in the mill until 1975, when, at the age of 18, he was invited to take a tour of the facility. Intrigued by the milling process, Hoffa applied for a job and was hired to perform a variety of basic mill duties that included sweeping, equipment maintenance and operating the cleaning house.

A couple of years later, at the urging of the mill superintendent who hired him, he enrolled at KSU to pursue a degree in milling science. Upon graduation, he was hired by Pillsbury Co. in 1981 and for the next 11 years worked in its mills in Ogden, Utah, US; Los Angeles, California, US; Enid, Oklahoma, US; and St. Louis, Missouri, US. He started with Pillsbury as a miller but was quickly promoted to head miller and later to mill superintendent. When ADM bought the mill in Enid, Hoffa remained there for a year before accepting the mill superintendent position with Cereal Food Processors at its plant in Wichita, Kansas, US.

In 1995, Hoffa joined Mennel Milling Co. and spent the next 13 years as plant manager of its Fostoria, Ohio, US, mill. The company promoted him to corporate milling engineer in 2008, and in that position, Hoffa was tasked with improving operating efficiencies at all the company’s mills.

Most recently, he was the IAOM’s Milling Technician Certificate Program instructor from 2015-21. He also operated a milling consulting business, JRH Processing Consultants, LLC, from 2018-22.

“He was the first instructor of the Milling Technician Certificate Program that IAOM offers through Cowley College, and he really enjoyed being able to share his knowledge and expertise with the students,” said Melinda Farris, chief executive officer of the IAOM.

Survivors include his wife, June, and sons Joel and Jeff, their wives and five grandchildren.