Weston, Garfield Howard

▪ 2003

“Garry” 

      Canadian-born entrepreneur and philanthropist (b. April 28, 1927, Canada—d. Feb. 15, 2002, London, Eng.), took control of his family's multinational business, Associated British Foods PLC (ABF), upon his father's retirement in 1967 and turned it into a vast international conglomerate with annual sales of £4.4 billion (about $6.4 billion). Weston's grandfather, the son of British immigrants to Canada, built a thriving bakery business there; his father, Willard Garfield Weston, returned (1931) the family to England, where he introduced presliced packaged bread and eventually expanded the company to include Twinings tea, Loblaws supermarkets (in Canada), and Fortnum & Mason's department stores. Garry Weston joined the firm in 1951, founded and was managing director (1954–67) of an Australian subsidiary, the Weston Biscuit Co., and then served as ABF chairman from 1967 until his own retirement in 2000. The Garfield Weston Foundation, established by Garry Weston, donated millions to medical research, education, and the arts, notably a single £20 million (about $29 million) donation to the British Museum in 1999.

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