New board appointment for Dairy Crest
Dairy Crest has announced the appointment of Martyn Wilks to the board as executive md of the Foods Division with effect from January 7 2008.
Wilks, aged 49, worked for Mars for 20 years. He was most recentlypresident of the Snackfood Division of Masterfoods USA, where he was directly responsible for 5,000 employees across all functions, including eight manufacturing sites and sales offices throughout the US. Prior to this, he held a variety of senior management positions within the Mars and Masterfoods Groups including md of Mars, France.
Peter Thornton, currently executive md of the Foods Division,will leave the company on March 31 2008 following a period of handover. He will leave the board with immediate effect. Thornton has been on the board since April 2003 and is leaving by mutual agreement having decided that now is the right time to pursue other career opportunities away from Dairy Crest.
Mark Allen, chief executive of Dairy Crest, said: "In the first instance, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Peter Thornton for the significant contribution he has made to Dairy Crest during his 14 years with the Group. Peter has recently played an important role in both the disposal of the majority of our retailer brand cheese operations and the acquisition of the St Hubert spreads business in France. We wish Peter all the best for the future.
"I am delighted to welcome Martyn Wilks to the Dairy Crest Board. Martyn has a proven track record at a very senior level within a major international food group. This will be invaluable as we continue to develop our strong brand portfolio and build our market position in Europe following the acquisition of St Hubert."
