Buzz Food Service traces its history back to 1938, when Charleston resident Mark Hill started Hy-Grade Sales Company in Charleston, West Virginia. In 1950, Hy-Grade Sales began production of Buzz Buttered Steaks, what would become the company’s signature item and a household brand name in many parts of West Virginia and Virginia.
In 1968, the company changed ownership and in the process changed its name to Buzz Products, Inc.Dickinson M. Gould and Dickinson M. Gould, Jr. along with partners Jim Sturm and Mike Spadafora bought the business from the Hill family, moved it to a new state-of-the-art, federally-inspected food processing plant in nearby Kanawha City, and focused on marketing Buzz Buttered Steaks and related processed meat products.
In 1980, “Dick” Gould Jr. became president of the corporation and expanded the business in the direction of general food distribution, adding canned goods, dry groceries and frozen foods to the company’s successful line of manufactured meat products.Under Dick’s leadership, in 1984, Buzz merged with Haddy’s Prime Beef, another successful Charleston meat processor, adding food service accounts in the “white tablecloth” market, including country clubs, fine restaurants and resort hotels.Additional growth came through the acquisition of other family-owned food businesses in the region, including Byard’s Famous Meats in Huntington, Charleston Food Products Company in Charleston, and Rich Creek Provisions in Rich Creek, Virginia.
Today the tradition of quality meats and superior service continues under the direction of Dickinson M. Gould III and an outstanding staff of longtime employees.
In 1980, “Dick” Gould Jr. became president of the corporation and expanded the business in the direction of general food distribution, adding canned goods, dry groceries and frozen foods to the company’s successful line of manufactured meat products.Under Dick’s leadership, in 1984, Buzz merged with Haddy’s Prime Beef, another successful Charleston meat processor, adding food service accounts in the “white tablecloth” market, including country clubs, fine restaurants and resort hotels.Additional growth came through the acquisition of other family-owned food businesses in the region, including Byard’s Famous Meats in Huntington, Charleston Food Products Company in Charleston, and Rich Creek Provisions in Rich Creek, Virginia.
