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Nestle chief executive Mark Schneider is leaving the Swiss food group after eight years in charge and will be replaced by Latin America boss Laurent Freixe, the company said Thursday.<\/p>\n
Schneider \u201chas decided to relinquish his roles as CEO\u00a0and member of the Board of Directors\u201d, Nestle said in a statement, adding that the move would be effective from September 1.<\/p>\n
\u201cLeading Nestle for the past 8 years has been an honor for me. I am grateful for what we have achieved, having transformed Nestle into a future-proofed, innovative and sustainable business,\u201d Schneider said in the statement.<\/p>\n
Freixe, who joined Nestle in France in 1986, \u201csuccessfully managed\u201d the company\u2019s European zone during the 2008 financial crisis and until 2014, the statement said.<\/p>\n
He was then named CEO of the Americas region before taking over at the newly created Latin America zone in 2022, \u201cwhere he has been successfully leading through challenging conditions\u201d.<\/p>\n
Nestle said Freixe has been nominated as a candidate for the board of directors at its 2025 annual general meeting.<\/p>\n
Nestle, whose brands range from Nespresso coffee capsules to Purina dog food and Haagen-Dazs ice cream, lowered its sales growth outlook for 2024 last month as it slowed its price increases in the first half of the year.<\/p>\n
The global packaged-food giant and its rivals had logged high sales growth in the past three years as they raised prices to make up for higher costs due to soaring inflation.<\/p>\n
The company has also faced controversy in recent years, with Swiss NGO Public Eye accusing Nestle of selling baby food with high levels of added sugar in low-income countries but not in wealthier nations.<\/p>\n
Nestle has countered that it had \u201cno double standard\u201d and applied the same nutrition and health principles everywhere.<\/p>\n
It has also scrambled to ease any concerns over its Perrier brand after France\u2019s food safety watchdog recommended stricter monitoring of sites where Nestle extracts mineral water following the discovery of traces of \u201cfaecal\u201d contamination.<\/p>\n
The company has since said it has stepped up monitoring of the sites, and Schneider has said the group\u2019s water was safe to drink.<\/p>\n
Freixe acknowledged that \u201cthere will always be challenges\u201d but expressed confidence in Nestle\u2019s ability to \u201clead and win everywhere we operate\u201d.<\/p>\n
Nestle said Thursday that Schneider \u201chas actively shaped the company\u2019s portfolio, in line with Nestle\u2019s strategy and with a focus on high-growth categories like coffee, pet care and nutritional health products\u201d.<\/p>\n
Nestle chairman Paul Bulcke praised Freixe as \u201ca talented leader with strategic acumen, extensive in-market experience and expertise as well as a deep understanding of markets and consumers\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cLaurent is the perfect fit for Nestle at this time,\u201d Bulcke added.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n