Mars, Incorporated has named CPG industry veteran Lauren Larsen as chief customer officer for Mars Food & Nutrition North America.

Larsen brings 18 years of CPG sales, category management and commercial strategy experience across multiple consumer brands and companies, including Procter & Gamble and Glanbia. Throughout her career, she has spearheaded sales strategies and category growth initiatives, building high-performing teams and driving market penetration across retail channels and consumer segments in competitive markets.

In her new role as chief customer officer, Larsen will lead sales strategies to drive growth and market penetration across the U.S. for the rice and ready meal categories. She will oversee sales plans for Ben's Original, Seeds of Change and Tasty Bite, as well as other strategic initiatives to maximize value creation and drive commercial excellence across the business.

“Mars Food & Nutrition stands out for the strength of its brands and the way it partners with customers to deliver quality and value at scale,” Larsen says. “The portfolio plays an important role in everyday meals for families across North America, and I'm excited by the opportunity to build on that foundation, working closely with retail partners to unlock growth, strengthen execution and help position the business for long-term success."

"We're excited to welcome Lauren to the Food & Nutrition North America Leadership Team," adds Dave Dusangh, regional president, Mars Food & Nutrition, North America. "Her ability to build high-performing sales organizations and drive commercial excellence will help accelerate growth across our portfolio, strengthen trusted customer partnerships and deliver against the shared goals we hold with our retail partners around quality, value and long-term growth, while reinforcing the principles that make Mars a great place to work."