Industry News

ANDEROL®, the synthetic specialty lubricants product line from the LUBRICANT ADDITIVES BUSINESS UNIT (LAB) is rebranding in line with parent company’s LANXESS’ corporate design.   

MEMP SERVICE CORPORATION (Molecular Environmental Monitoring Provider) announced the official launch of its ISO 17025 accredited molecular testing laboratory. 

APPLIED FOOD DIAGNOSTICS, INC.’S Molecular Environmental Monitoring Program (MEMP) Salmonella assay received AOAC Performance Tested Methods Certification, and its SIMUL-qPCR assays received AOAC PTM Validations. 

AVEVA will be extending its long-standing collaboration with MICROSOFT to focus on accelerating digital transformation through integration of AVEVA’s portfolio with Microsoft cloud services, especially Microsoft Azure (infrastructure, data and AI services). 

BROOKS INSTRUMENT has increased its service and support network by adding CROSS COMPANY (Raleigh, North Carolina), TRILLIUM MEASUREMENT AND CONTROL (Toronto, Ontario) and POLYCONTROLS in Montréal. 

CANTRELL•GAINCO GROUP opened a new corporate headquarters and manufacturing facility in Gainesville, Georgia. 

TYSON FOODS, INC. plans to build new production facilities in China and Thailand, and expand its facility in The Netherlands, adding over 100,000 metric tons of fully cooked poultry capacity. 

TREEHOUSE FOODS has signed a definitive agreement to acquire the majority of the U.S. branded pasta portfolio of RIVIANA FOODS, a subsidiary of EBRO, for $242.5 million in cash. 

INGREDION INCORPORATED signed an agreement with James Cameron and Suzy Amis Cameron to acquire the remaining portion of ownership in VERDIENT FOODS INC. that the Ingredion did not already own. 

NESTLÉ acquired FRESHLY, one of the leading fresh-prepared meal delivery services in the U.S. The deal values Freshly at $950 million, with potential earnouts up to $550 million contingent to the successful growth of the business. This transaction was signed and closed on Oct. 30. 

SMITHFIELD FOODS, INC. has committed $500,000 to a two-year partnership with MINORITIES IN AGRICULTURE, NATURAL RESOURCES AND RELATED SCIENCES, a non-profit organization that pursues excellence in leadership, scholarship and service through fostering involvement of membership from diverse backgrounds in the field of agriculture.   

BUNGE LIMITED agreed to sell its rice mill in Woodland, California to FARMERS' RICE COOPERATIVE. In addition, BUNGE LIMITED announced that its BUNGE LODERS CROKLAAN JV has agreed to sell its refinery located in Rotterdam to NESTE CORPORATION. Bunge will lease back the facility from Neste in a phased transition through 2024 so that it can continue to supply its customers with its products. 

NO EVIL FOODS, maker of small-batch plant-based meat, is announcing its partnership with REPURPOSE GLOBAL, a movement of conscious consumers and businesses, to offset the company’s plastic footprint. The brand has committed to going plastic negative by funding the recovery and recycling of two pounds of plastic waste for every one pound they generate. 

CECE’S VEGGIE COMPANY sold its Austin, Texas, manufacturing plant to FRESH TEXAS, a San Antonio-based supplier of fresh packaged produce and herbs. 

DRÄGER signed an agreement with VECTOR CONTROLS AND AUTOMATION GROUP to represent the former’s fixed flame and gas detection systems portfolio. 

FPS FOOD PROCESS SOLUTIONS was awarded the Gold Level OEM Certificate from ROCKWELL AUTOMATION, a significant recognition of partnership and collaboration. 

HYDRITE CHEMICAL CO., an integrated manufacturer and supplier of chemicals and related services, announced the creation of a group of professionals called the RITE Team to enhance technical support and introduce innovative solutions that help address critical issues in the food industry. 

GRUBMARKET has acquired BEST FRESH PRODUCE, its fifth acquisition in the Los Angeles market. 

BENESTAR BRANDS, LLC, a portfolio company of Highlander Partners, L.P., has acquired MILLER BAKING COMPANY, the manufacturer of Pretzilla branded soft pretzel bites and buns. 

ICL has agreed to acquire FERTILÁQUA, a Brazilian specialty plant nutrition company, for approximately $120 million. 

KOCH SEPARATION SOLUTIONS announced the acquisition of RELCO, a provider of process technologies for the dairy and food industry. 

MARS, working with SABIC and Huhtamaki, will incorporate recycled polypropylene plastic into the primary packaging for some of its popular pet food brands. For Mars, this marks an important step in its efforts to reduce virgin plastics use across its packaging portfolio, to do its part to build a circular economy where no packaging becomes waste. 

KURITA WATER INDUSTRIES, (Kurita), a global provider of water treatment products and services, received the “Distinction Award for Water Company of the Year" awarded by GLOBAL WATER INTELLIGENCE as part of its annual Global Water Awards. This is the second time Kurita has received this award following its first recognition in 2017. 

Twenty-seven winners, including six student award winners, have been selected as recipients of a coveted 2020 AMERISTAR PACKAGE AWARD, one of the packaging industry’s prestigious design awards programs, produced by IOPP, THE INSTITUTE OF PACKAGING PROFESSIONALS. Many include food and beverage companies. For a complete list of the winners, visit IoPP’s Web site. In a related announcement, JANE CHASE, executive director, IoPP, has been inducted into the 2020 class of the PACKAGING AND PROCESSING HALL OF FAME. 

Jens Karolyi, senior vice president corporate marketing and culture and member of the Executive Board at INTERROLL and Bram ten Kate, campus director at FONTYS VENLO UNIVERSITY OF APPLIED SCIENCES in the Netherlands, have signed a cooperation agreement. The aim of the collaboration is to give students in the fields of logistics, IT, engineering, and business administration an understanding of the world of modern intralogistics and to enable them to put their acquired knowledge to practical use at Interroll. 

INNIO announced the acquisition of ECI-DISTRIBUTION GMBH and POWERUP GMBH. The joint acquisition of ECI-Distribution GmbH and PowerUp GmbH is an important step in expanding the INNIO Group's in-house competencies and performance portfolio further in the areas of services and future-oriented components for gas engine and cogeneration plants 

PIZZA HUT is partnering with BEYOND MEAT to offer a plant-based meat pizza coast-to-coast. 

SWEET EARTH FOODS, a Nestlé Professional brand and plant-based food innovator, announced their expansion of the PB Triple Play, a 100% plant-based Bac'n Cheezeburger—and other new plant-based options—for students at five premier universities across the U.S. 

PLANTX LIFE INC. has agreed to partner with LES MARCHES TAU NATURAL FOOD STORES (TAU) who will assist PlantX in launching a new line of PlantX private label products, make available TAU's products to the PlantX e-commerce platform and provide consulting services for PlantX's planned brick and mortar locations.

People News

ECOTEC, supplier of energy-efficient battery charging and monitoring systems, appointed BRIAN MCMILLAN as its new national sales manager. McMillan be responsible for growing sales nationally by adding new distributors and through the addition of new major accounts. 

JBT CORPORATION promoted KRISTINA PASCHALL to JBT's executive leadership team as executive vice president, chief information & digital officer. 

SEEPEX promoted CHRIS KARASCH, previously a territory manager for progressive pumps, to national sales manager. 

BINMASTER reports that RICH TAVIS has joined the company’s sales team as vice president of sales for the Southeastern United States. 

SEALED AIR CORPORATION announced that KARL DEILY, SVP and chief commercial officer plans to retire in April 2021. TOBIAS GRASSO, president of the Americas, KEVIN PICCIONE, president of Asia Pacific, and GERD WICHMANN, president of Europe, Middle East and Africa will be part of Sealed Air’s executive leadership team and report directly to Ted Doheny, president and CEO.

In a first for DOLE ASIA HOLDINGS PTE. LTD., BARBARA GUERPILLON has been appointed head of Dole Ventures across both packaged foods and its fresh businesses. Based in Singapore, the global strategic role is designed to enable profitable business growth through start-up led innovations and the creation of entrepreneurial networks worldwide. 

E TECHNOLOGIES GROUP, one of the largest engineering and system integration firms in the U.S., appointed that MATTHEW WISE to the role of chief executive officer. Outgoing CEO Ralph Carter is retiring and will continue as a board director at that time.

MARIANI PACKING CO., a California based, family owned and operated dried fruit company welcomes another fourth-generation family member to join the team. NATALIE MARIANI KLING has come on board as marketing strategist to work with her family in growing their 114-year-old company. 

The CALIFORNIA LEAFY GREENS MARKETING AGREEMENT (LGMA) named TIM YORK as its new chief executive officer during the recent Board of Directors meeting. York will replace SCOTT HORSFALL who is retiring in early 2021. 

CEREBELLY announced that GREG SHEARSON will join the company as chief executive officer effective immediately. Shearson, a long-time consumer products and private equity operating executive, brings over three decades of experience in the consumer packaged goods industry. Since its September 2019 launch, Cerebelly has emerged as a breakthrough startup in the infant nutrition category with presence in more than 4,000 stores in the U.S.

PEPSICO, INC. announced its Board of Directors has elected DAVE LEWIS as an independent member of the Board. Lewis will be a member of the Audit Committee. 

KELLOGG COMPANY announced the election of J. MICHAEL SCHLOTMAN, former executive vice president and chief financial officer (CFO) at The Kroger Company, to its Board of Directors. 

HORMEL FOODS CORPORATION announced the advancements of several plant managers as a result of the company's recently announced retirement and advancements in its operations leadership. They are as follows:

• JOE MUZIK, plant manager at the Algona (Iowa) Plant, will assume the plant manager role at Progressive Processing (Dubuque, Iowa).
• JEREMY RUMMEL, plant manager at the Beloit (Wis.) Plant, will become the plant manager at the Algona (Iowa) Plant.
• ROGER VOS, Skippy Foods (Little Rock, Ark.) plant manager, will succeed Rummel as plant manager at the Beloit Plant.
• ANTHONY FREEMAN, plant manager at Lloyd's Barbeque (Mendota Heights, Minn.), will move to plant manager at Skippy Foods.
• MELISSA ROSSMAN, current superintendent of Grocery Products Production at the Austin (Minn.) Plant, will succeed Freeman as the plant manager at the Lloyd's Barbeque facility.
• Additionally, CODY ANDERSON, product manufacturing manager for Grocery Products at the Corporate Office (Austin, Minn.), will assume the role of plant manager at Creative Contract Packaging (Aurora, Ill.), replacing current plant manager Tom Koehn, who will retire.

Hormel also announced the advancement of PAUL KUEHNEMAN and ELDON QUAM to assistant controllers. 

GLENROY INC., a converter and printer of sustainable flexible packaging for over 55 years, has announced new executive leadership of the company. TOM DANNEKER, former president of Klement’s Sausage Company has joined Glenroy as its new president & CEO. Danneker will be leading the company with a strategic focus on growth, including a major production expansion. 

SAVE FOODS, an Israeli-based food-tech company focused on developing and selling eco-friendly products specifically designed to extend the shelf life and ensure food safety of fresh fruits and vegetables, has appointed DAVID PALACH as co-chief executive officer, alongside the Company’s current Chief Executive Officer Dan Sztybel.