Here is a round-up of the comings and goings over the last few months.
Lief Labs welcomed Dr. Chioma Ikonte as chief science officer (CSO), where she now leads the company’s innovation, product design, development, project management, quality and regulatory affairs. Prior to Lief, Dr. Ikonte, who holds a doctorate in pharmaceutical sciences from University of Southern California, was vice president of R&D for Melaleuca, responsible for supplements, foods and oral OTC drugs.
PLT Health Solutions appointed Joe Weiss as global head of brand management, a role created to support the development of PLT’s most strategic ingredient brands in global markets. Prior to joining PLT, Weiss served as president of Nutrition21, vice president of corporate brands at The Vitamin Shoppe and senior vice president of Merchandising at GNC.
MartinBauer, the Germany-based manufacturer and marketer of fine teas and botanical ingredients, introduced Michael Wagner, PhD, as its new chief executive officer in North America. The succession is part of a leadership change within the Group that has seen Anne Wedel-Klein appointed as the nature network CEO, succeeding Albert Ferstl.
Formulator, clinical dietitian scientist and member of the Ingenious Ingredients team Shawn Wells has taken on a new role as chief science officer of functional beverage company Life Cider, where he will contribute to developing Life Cider’s growing line of products, including a new energy beverage.
Vitaquest International named David Alcaraz as its new senior vice president of quality assurance. Prior to joining Vitaquest, Alcaraz held leadership roles at Pharmachem Laboratories, The Vitamin Shoppe, Arizona Nutritional Supplements and Clorox.
Ahmed Khan Muttaqeer joined Natural Remedies as the business head for nuTracare to drive strategic growth in the U.S. market. With over two decades of experience in the nutraceutical and phytopharma industries, Khan previously served as vice president of sales and marketing at Sabinsa Corp, USA.
Trace named Chuck Walkley chief executive officer as Matthew Kilts steps into the role of Chairman. Walkley will be charged with leading the company’s next phase of growth while staying true to its roots in mineral-based supplementation. Walkley joined Trace as chief operating officer in 2023 and has held leadership positions with companies including CocoVibe, New Whey Nutrition, Tampico, Vermont Pure Springs and PepsiCo during his 30+ year career in the CPG industry.
Sabinsa expanded its team with the addition of Jeanette Fisher as marketing director and Kim Merselis as sales manager. At the company’s Utah facility, Darrin Fox was named VP operations and Melissa Beddoes promoted to operations manager. International appointments include Tatiana Tetereva to the sales office in Russia and pharmacists Staomy Arenas Kami to commercial and technical sales and Camilla Correa Cugnier Machado as quality analyst for Sabinsa Brasil. Dr. K Srinivasa Reddy rejoined the company as Sami-Sabinsa group director of quality & regulatory to drive quality initiatives across the organization and its subsidiaries, including oversight of quality control, quality assurance, microbiology, clinical trials and regulatory compliance for formulation and ingredients.
AIDP, Inc. announced key upgrades to its research and development department, promoting Jennifer Gu to SVP of R&D and welcoming Dr. Mike Weiser as VP of R&D and Dr. Rafea Naffa as scientific advisor to the department. Dr. Weiser holds his BS in chemistry, PhD in biomedical science and post-doctorate in stress neurobiology and physiology. Dr. Rafea Naffa earned his PhD in biochemistry and has authored over 35 peer-reviewed publications, primarily focusing on collagen.
Kemin added two new members to its team of technical experts for Kemin Food Technologies – North America. Juan Carlos Monge has joined the business unit as technical services manager and Kayle Eivins as technical service associate. Monge will play a key role in ensuring the team understands and successfully fulfills customer objectives for product success, and Evins will support both the Kemin legacy portfolio and a suite of functional proteins.
SuanNutra welcomed Karin Linnewiel Hermoni as vice president of science and innovation to shape the company’s research strategy and drive new product development. She holds a PhD in molecular nutrition, brings vast experience in science commercialization and clinical strategy design and serves as co-chair of the Science Committee at Women in Nutraceuticals (WIN).
Andy Hall-Ponselè was promoted to chief scientific officer at Green Bioactives, where he will oversee the R&D team and contribute to spearheading the production of the company’s first generation of plant cell culture products. Hall-Ponselè joined Green Bioactives as head of operations in January 2023 and previously founded Biotangents Ltd, an agtech-oriented synthetic biology company.
Scott Engberg joined NXT USA as its new vice president of sales to drive new partnerships, expand market reach and further establish NXT USA as a key player in the ingredient solutions industry.
Contract manufacturer and white label company Summit Rx appointed Adam Goodman as its new VP of sales and marketing. Goodman, a 30-year industry veteran, was most recently national sales manager for Okamoto-USA. He is also the current President of the East Region of the Natural Products Association.
WishGarden Herbs expanded its leadership team with three strategic hires including Tracy Van Hoven as the company’s first-ever chief marketing officer, naturopathic doctor Erin Stokes as medical director and Victor Zesiger as quality manager.
CVS Caremark CEO David Joyner was promoted to the head of CVS Health, replacing Karen Lynch. According to a press release, the board believes that Joyner’s deep understanding of CVS Health’s integrated business will help steer the company through challenges including plummeting shares, sluggish growth and pressure from investors.
MycoTechnology announced Rob Case, member of the MycoTechnology Board of Directors, as its new chairman of the Board. He succeeds Alan Hahn, co-founder and former chairman, who will continue to support the company as a member of the board. Prior to joining MycoTechnology, Case held multiple leadership roles at Nestlé, including chief marketing officer and president of Nestlé Beverages, and served as board member for several CPG companies.
