Feb 11, 2005 10:26 AM, from staff and wire reports

Clarence Birdseye in his office, September 1943.

Clarence Birdseye, pioneer of the frozen food industry, made it possible to eat farm-fresh fruits and vegetables year-round. Birds Eye Foods, the Rochester NY-based processor of frozen vegetables and other food products, reports that Birdseye will be inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame (NIHF).

The Hall of Fame honors men and women responsible for technological advances that make human, social, and economic progress possible. Birdseye and 13 other innovators will be inducted in May, bringing to 234 the number of inventors who the NIHF has determined to have contributed to the welfare of mankind and promoted the progress of science and the useful arts.

“Birds Eye Foods congratulates the other inductees and applauds the selection of Clarence Birdseye to the NIHF,” said Dennis M Mullen, chairman, president, and chief executive officer. “He truly revolutionized the way we eat by introducing a quality preservation system for foods, which allows us to enjoy the fresh tastes of summer regardless of the season.”