BENEO, a leading manufacturer of functional ingredients for food, feed and pharma announced the appointment of Dr Mike Eberle as the newest member of its Executive Board of Directors at BENEO GmbH, effective from 1st March 2024. In his new role, Eberle will be responsible for overseeing Operations at BENEO.
Eberle, who holds a PhD in Chemistry from the Technical University of Darmstadt, Germany, brings nearly three decades of experience within the international food and beverage sector to the new role. He started his career with positions at Unilever in both Germany and The Netherlands. Following this, he has held leadership roles in production, supply chain, logistics, and operations at leading food and drink manufacturers. Most recently, Eberle was positioned as the Chief Operations Officer at Rotkäppchen, a sparkling wine producer based in Germany.
As part of the new role at BENEO, Eberle will be responsible for Operations including production, technology, supply chain management, quality, raw material, health, safety and environmental protection, as well as sustainability. His appointment comes at a pivotal time as BENEO continues to focus on the sustainable development of its plant-based functional ingredients portfolio.
Tate & Lyle PLC announce the appointment of David Hearn as a Director and Chair of the Board of Tate & Lyle from 1 January 2024. On appointment, he will also become Chair of the Nominations Committee.
David Hearn is a highly experienced Chair both of listed companies and privately owned businesses. He currently serves as Chair of Safestore Holdings plc and is also Chair of The a2 Milk Company, a company listed on the New Zealand and Australian Stock Exchanges, a position he will step down from on 16 November 2023. He is a non-executive director of Lovat Partners Ltd.
In a career spanning more than 40 years, David has held senior roles in a number of global businesses, including in the food and beverage industry with Del Monte, PepsiCo and United Biscuits. David served as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Goodman Fielder, a listed Australian food business, from 1995 to 2001 and also as CEO of Cordiant Group plc in the US from 2001 to 2003. In 2005, he was appointed CEO of Committed Capital, an international private equity and advisory firm based in London and Sydney, for whom he acted as Chair of a wide range of portfolio businesses over a twelve-year period.
David Hearn will succeed Warren Tucker who has been Interim Chair since 1 September 2023. Warren will continue to serve as a Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Audit Committee after he steps down as Interim Chair.
Paul Forman, Senior Independent Director, who led the search for the new Chair, will retire from the Board on 31 December 2023 and, as previously announced, Kim Nelson will take up the position of Senior Independent Director of Tate & Lyle from 1 January 2024.
The Board of Britvic is announced that Ian Durant has commenced his tenure as Chair of Britvic plc. Ian succeeds John Daly who retired from the Board on 31 May after eight years on the Board, six of which were spent as Chair of the Company.
Ian has many years of experience in consumer facing businesses and in retail. He currently serves as the Chair of Warren Partners Ltd, having recently stepped down as Chair of Greggs plc and has previously served as Chair of DFS Furniture plc and Capital & Countries Properties plc in the last five years. His earlier career included senior leadership roles at Liberty International Plc and Thistle Hotels. Other boards he has served on as a Non-Executive Director include Greene King plc, Home Retail Group PLC and Westbury plc.
Ian was appointed Chair designate on 1 February and since been involved in an orderly handover of responsibilities with John.
European Bioplastics (EUBP), the association representing the interests of the bioplastics industry in Europe, has elected a new Board. The EUBP leadership team will be headed by its new Chairperson, Stefan Barot (BIOTEC) and supported by the new Vice Chairpersons, Lars Börger (Neste) and Mariagiovanna Vetere (NatureWorks). “Never before has our industry received that much of attention. Economically and politically, these are pivotal times, and I’m very pleased to be able to support our industry in my new role as EUBP Chair”, says Stefan Barot.
Crucial EU legislation on bioplastics is expected to be adopted by the end of the year and beyond. This is a great opportunity to fully acknowledge the role of bio-based and compostable plastics within the circular economy. We welcome the European Commission’s initiatives to establish a clear and reliable political environment for bioplastics. This is crucial to ensure a continued successful development of our industry. It also enables bioplastics to contribute to the achievement of the EU’s ambitious climate goals, especially a lower environmental footprint”, he adds.
Afsaneh Nabifar (BASF SE), Peter von den Kerkhoff (Covation Biomaterials LLC), Patrick Zimmermann (FKuR), Franz Kraus (Novamont), Paolo La Scola (TotalEnergies Corbion), and Erwin Lepoudre (Kaneka) are also members of the new Board, with the latter serving as the Treasurer.
“I would like to express my gratitude to all members of the previous board for their great contributions to our association over the past term”, says Barot and adds: “In the name of European Bioplastics I would also like to express special appreciation to my predecessor, François de Bie, who had served the association as Chairperson for almost ten years. Now, important tasks lie ahead of us and I’m very much looking forward to actively approaching them.”
The volume of Elopak’s Natural Brown Board cartons surpassed one billion units in February 2021. The milestone is good news for the company’s sustainability efforts, as the lower CO2 footprint of these cartons means an estimated 3,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions have been avoided as a result. The reduction in CO2 emissions resulting from the use of Natural Brown Board is equivalent to approximately 1,400 round trip flights for one person London – New York.
The news comes after Elopak recorded a significant increase in its sale of Natural Brown Board cartons in 2019, with brands responding to increased consumer interest in the environmental credentials of their products by making the transition to sustainable packaging solutions. Today approximately 20 % of the Pure-Pak® milk cartons Elopak sells in Western Europe are produced with Natural Brown Board.
Launched in 2017, in partnership with supplier Stora Enso, Elopak was the first packaging company to provide gable top cartons made with Natural Brown Board. These Pure-Pak® cartons are renewable and recyclable. They have a lower CO2 footprint owing to reduced wood consumption and the elimination of the bleaching process. Their rustic, natural look effectively communicates this commitment to sustainability and instantly stands out on the shelves.
Several customers were quick to embrace the Natural Brown Board with Arla being the first major brand to adopt the innovation for its line of organic EKO products in Sweden. In June 2018, when Arla launched its Arla Organic range of milk and drinking yoghurts, the brand opted again for one litre Pure-Pak® cartons with Natural Brown Board, which were rolled out across the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Germany and Finland.
Some customers have taken the concept further and removed the renewable plastic cap. Norwegian dairy, TINE, transitioned from a white carton with a cap to a Natural Brown Board carton without a cap, resulting in a carbon footprint reduction of around 40 %. Sweden’s second-largest dairy Skånemejerier has also removed the caps on all their Hjordnära organic milk one-liter cartons, launching its organic milk in new Pure-Pak® cartons with an easy opening funnel feature to replace the plastic closure.
Since its launch, Elopak’s Natural Brown Board cartons has served as a platform for further sustainability-focused innovations, including the Pure-Pak® Imagine launched in 2020. The carton is a modern version of the company’s original Pure-Pak® carton, containing 46 % less plastic and designed with a new easy open feature. It has no plastic screw cap and is 100 % forest-based made with Natural Brown Board, making it Elopak’s most environmentally friendly carton to date.
Tate & Lyle PLC announces that John Cheung joined the Board as a non-executive director and a member of the Audit and Nominations Committees on 1 January 2021.
Currently an executive director of nutrition group China Feihe Limited, John brings a breadth of food and beverage experience with a deep understanding of markets in Asia, particularly in China. In a career spanning 30 years in the fields of nutrition, food and beverages, John has served as President for Wyeth Nutrition Global, having previously served as Nestlé Group’s leader in China and earlier held senior roles with Coca-Cola and Procter & Gamble.
After nearly nine years on the Board, the Company also announces that non-executive director, Dr Ajai Puri, will retire on 31st March 2021.
Dr Matthias Moser takes over management of all companies and brands of the Food Ingredients Division
Lennart Kutschinski will accompany the Group in the future as a consultant
The Stern-Wywiol Gruppe is taking the next step in its coporate orientation and the brand focus strategy 2020 and is reorganising its tasks within the management board. With effect from 1 October 2019, all companies and brands of the Food Ingredients Division will be brought together in the management board under Dr Matthias Moser, who already heads the companies Hydrosol, SternEnzym, OlbrichtArom and hs Additives. In this connection, Lennart Kutschinski is leaving the management board of the Stern-Wywiol Gruppe and the divisional management of the brands Mühlenchemie, SternVitamin and DeutscheBack.
Lennart Kutschinski will accompany Stern-Wywiol Gruppe in the future as a consultant on issues affecting the entire group of companies, including the expansion in particular. From January 2020 on, Hendrik Begemann will take over Lennart Kutschinski’s tasks at Mühlenchemie as the new Global Head of Business Unit. Hendrik Begemann is currently Managing Director of the Mexican foreign branch Stern Ingredients Mexico.
“With this new structure, the Stern-Wywiol Gruppe is ideally equipped to continue its story of growth,” emphasizes CEO Torsten Wywiol, “The company and the owner family Wywiol are personally grateful to Lennart Kutschinski for the services he has rendered nationally and internationally over the past 25 years in expanding the Stern-Wywiol Gruppe. We appreciate him enormously, both as a colleague and as a person, and we are very pleased that he will still be at our side in the future. Matthias Moser, an experienced manager from our own group, takes over the operative responsibility for our Food Ingredients companies. As Managing Director, he recently successfully developed several units and was instrumental in expanding our market position,” says Torsten Wywiol.
CFO Michael Andersen leaves the Executive Board of Krones AG with immediate effect by mutual agreement.
Krones AG would like to thank Michael Andersen for his strong commitment over the past three and a half years. The operative CFO functions will be temporarily executed by CEO Christoph Klenk until a successor has been found.
Tate & Lyle PLC announces that Kimberly (Kim) Nelson will join the Board as a non-executive director and a member of the Audit and Nominations Committees on 1 July 2019. Kim brings extensive experience and knowledge of the food and beverage industry to the Board having worked for General Mills Inc. for nearly 30 years. During her career at General Mills, she held a number of senior brand and general management roles before becoming Senior Vice President, External Relations in 2010. Kim retired from General Mills Inc. in 2018. She is a US citizen.
The following changes to the Board and Board Committees will take effect at the conclusion of the Company’s AGM on 25 July 2019:
Board
- Douglas Hurt will retire from the Board, having served as a non-executive director since March 2010, as the Chair of the Audit Committee since March 2015 and as Senior Independent Director since January 2017.
- Warren Tucker is appointed as Chair of the Audit Committee.
- Paul Forman is appointed as Senior Independent Director.
Board Committees
- Dr Ajai Puri will step down from the Remuneration Committee and join the Audit Committee.
- Sybella Stanley will step down from the Audit Committee and join the Remuneration Committee.
- Paul Forman will step down from the Remuneration Committee.
Dr Gerry Murphy, Chairman of Tate & Lyle, said: “I am delighted that Kim has agreed to join the Board. Her appointment recognises the importance of the US to Tate & Lyle, in terms of our customers, operations and employees. Her substantial experience in the food and beverage industry will be of significant benefit to the Board.”
“I would like to thank Douglas Hurt for his nine years of outstanding service and significant contribution to the Board and, in particular, for his time served as Chairman of the Audit Committee and as Senior Independent Director.”
There are no further disclosures to be made in connection with Ms Nelson’s appointment pursuant to paragraph 9.6.13 of the Financial Conduct Authority’s Listing Rules.
