Louis Sclafani, 65; had owned tomato-processing firm

Louis J. Sclafani, 65, of Marlton, former operator of the last tomato-processing company in New Jersey, died of brain cancer Saturday at home.

Mr. Sclafani and his cousin, Chip Sclafani, ran Violet Packing Co. in Williamstown from 1985 until it was sold in 2005. The company was established in 1883 and had been operated by the Sclafani family since the end of World War II.

In 2002, Violet Packing, which is still operating, produced nearly a million cases of Sclafani brand tomatoes and Don Pepino pizza and spaghetti sauces. By then, Violet Packing was the last of the tomato-processing plants that once dotted the South Jersey landscape.

"I'm glad we stuck it out," Mr. Sclafani told a reporter that year.

About 95 percent of Violet's tomatoes came from New Jersey, Mr. Sclafani said; the rest arrived from Virginia before the Jersey crop ripened.

In 2002, from August to October, "the weekday air around the plant is thick with the red-gravy smell of a Sunday in South Philadelphia," according to a story in The Inquirer.

Mr. Sclafani was past president of the New Jersey Food Processors and served on the board of the Food Products Association.

A graduate of Bishop Eustace High School, he earned a bachelor's degree in engineering from Bradley University.

During the Vietnam War he served in the Navy as a damage-control officer aboard the destroyer USS Mansfield off the coast of North Vietnam.

After his discharge, Mr. Sclafani was a plant manager for food companies in California before returning to New Jersey in the 1980s.

As a teenager, he became an Eagle Scout and later served on the board of the Southern New Jersey Council of the Boy Scouts of America.

A sailing enthusiast, Mr. Sclafani earned a Coast Guard captain's license to operate boats up to 100 tons, and sailed with friends in the waters of California, the Caribbean, the Chesapeake, and the Mediterranean. He was an avid skier and was in love with the Rockies, his family said.

Mr. Sclafani is survived by his wife of 11 years, Carole Ryan Sclafani; sisters Vicki Orzechowski, Rosemarie Cirina, and Carol Novick; and nieces and nephews.

Friends may call from 6 to 9 p.m. today at Bradley Funeral Home, Route 73 and Evesham Road, Marlton. A Funeral Mass will be said at 10 a.m. tomorrow at St. Mary of the Lakes Church, Jackson Road, Medford. Burial will be in New St. Mary's Cemetery, Bellmawr.

Donations may be made to the National Brain Tumor Society, 124 Watertown St., Watertown, Mass. 02472.