Custom Foods of America Incorporated
Updated Filing received by DOL
Custom Foods of America Incorporated, an accommodation & food services employer in Knoxville, Tennessee, reported 276 participants in its health and welfare plan for plan year 2025. Its Form 5500 shows $1.7M in insurance premiums across 3 contracts and $144,415 in broker commissions and fees, 5.6% of medical premium against a national median of 3.8% among plans that paid commissions in plan year 2024. The plan is a mix of insured and self-funded coverage. The Department of Labor received the filing on August 20, 2026, within the extension window.
Who was paid on Custom Foods of America Incorporated's plan
Schedule A, Part I lists each broker or agent paid on each insurance contract and the amount. Totals below add every contract Custom Foods of America Incorporated filed for 2025.
| Broker or agent | Commissions | Fees | Total | Contracts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deborah Kennedy · Chattanooga, TN | $78,900 | $0 | $78,900 | 1 |
| Marsh McLennan Agency · Greensboro, NC | $25,786 | $10,749 | $36,535 | 4 |
| Michael James · Franklin, TN | $14,764 | $0 | $14,764 | 1 |
| AssuredPartners · Louisville, KY | $7,560 | $0 | $7,560 | 1 |
Source: DOL Form 5500 Schedule A, Part I (broker commissions and fees), plan year 2025, as published in EBSA's 2025 "Latest" dataset. Part I names whoever the carrier paid, which can be a firm or an individual agent; both are public record. Amounts exclude pay from carriers not tied to a listed contract.
Insurance contracts and carriers
Every insurance contract reported on Schedule A: carrier, what it covers, people covered at year end, earned premium, and broker compensation.
| Carrier · coverage | Covered | Premium | Broker pay | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bluecross Blueshield of Tennessee, Inc.health, dental, vision | 211 | $1.7M | $93,664 | 5.6% |
| United of Omaha Life Insurance Companylife, short-term disability, long-term disability | 307 | — | $38,676 | — |
| Standard Insurance Companyindemnity | 114 | — | $12,075 | — |
Source: DOL Form 5500 Schedule A, plan year 2025. Self-funded medical coverage has no premium; amounts shown for it are stop-loss or administrative contracts.
How Custom Foods of America Incorporated compares
Medians across employers for plan year 2024, the most recent complete year. Commission rates use fully insured medical contracts only; dollar medians use every employer that disclosed broker pay.
Premium per covered person on medical contracts: $7,989 a year (national median $7,274).
Source: BenefitsLedger benchmarks from 58,547 employer health plans with 100 or more participants, plan year 2024. Methodology.
Filings and timeliness
Plans this employer filed under its EIN with a health benefit code. Large plans are due seven months after the plan year ends, or two and a half months later with an extension; amended filings carry the amendment date, so no timing is asserted for them.
| Plan | Plan year end | Received by DOL | Timing | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Custom Foods of America Incorporated Employee Benefits Plan#501 · insurance, general assets | December 31, 2025 | August 20, 2026 | within extension | 276 |
Source: DOL Form 5500 Part I and signature dates; "late" means received after the extended deadline (the 15th day of the tenth month after plan year end). What a late Form 5500 costs.
How much did Custom Foods of America Incorporated pay in health insurance broker commissions in 2025?
Custom Foods of America Incorporated's 2025 Form 5500 reports $144,415 in broker commissions and fees across 3 insurance contracts ($131,818 in commissions, $12,597 in fees), with Deborah Kennedy receiving the largest share.
Is Custom Foods of America Incorporated's health plan self-funded or fully insured?
The 2025 filing indicates the plan is a mix of insured and self-funded coverage. Medical coverage is written by Bluecross Blueshield of Tennessee, Inc..
How does Custom Foods of America Incorporated's broker compensation compare with similar employers?
Custom Foods of America Incorporated paid 5.6% of medical premium in commissions and fees. The median for employers with 200-499 participants is 3.6%, and the median in Tennessee is 3.9%. Percentages are computed only on fully insured medical contracts with filed premiums.
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Record built October 24, 2026 from U.S. Department of Labor, EBSA Form 5500 datasets (2025, 2024, 2023 plan years, 'Latest' files). Filings can run 7 to 10 months behind the plan year; always confirm against current plan documents. BenefitsLedger is not affiliated with the U.S. Department of Labor. Open the DOL filing search.