Rosina Food Products announced Friday that its founder and the chairman of the board of Rosina Holdings Inc., James Corigliano, died this week at his home in Amherst, N.Y.

Corigliano founded Rosina in 1963 as a storefront sausage business in Buffalo that served neighborhood meat markets, supermarkets, and restaurants. The company later moved into Italian frozen food in the foodservice and private label industry. His sons joined the company in the mid-1970s, with Russell becoming president and CEO in 1997 and Frank taking over as executive vice president.

In a statement from Russell to the Rosina employees, he said his father was “a loving, demanding and encouraging father, to me, my brothers, Frank and Jim and our sisters, Maria and Theresa. He demanded and instilled in us the same commitment and dedication in our personal and professional lives that he had in his. His children and grandchildren all benefited from his cheerfulness, humor, intellect, strong values and his passion to succeed. He recognized that quality products, service and solid partnerships would be the basis of success for his company."