TerraVia Appoints Veteran Food and CPG Executive as New CEO
August 08 2016 - 4:02PM
Business Wire
Apu Mody, Former President of Mars Food America
Brings 25 Years of Expertise to Lead TerraVia’s Focus on Food,
Nutrition & Specialty Ingredients
TerraVia Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:TVIA), a next generation food,
nutrition and specialty ingredients company and pioneer in algae
innovation, has announced that Apu Mody, former President of Mars
Food America, has been appointed CEO and a member of the Board of
Directors, effective on or about August 22nd.
The appointment of Mr. Mody is part of the planned transition
announced in March. Current co-founder, Chairman and CEO Jonathan
Wolfson will continue to serve as CEO until August 22nd, and will
then assume the role of Executive Chairman.
“TerraVia is lucky, and I am personally thrilled to have Apu
lead our next phase of growth and to establish TerraVia as a leader
in plant-based food and nutrition based on our groundbreaking algae
ingredients,” said Jonathan Wolfson. “His experience at both
Fortune 50 companies and in early stage ventures, including leading
strong growth at both Mars and Del Monte, make him the ideal choice
to accelerate commercialization and growth of the movement around
algae-based foods.”
Mr. Mody brings over 25 years of experience and a strong record
of financial success and innovation in the CPG, Retail and
Restaurant sectors. Most recently, as President of Mars Food
America, he was responsible for a significant turnaround of the
business covering the US, Canada, Brazil and the Middle East,
eventually creating the fastest growing region for Mars Food. While
at Mars, Apu served on the Executive Committee and Board of
Directors of the GMA (Grocery Manufacturers of America). Prior to
Mars, Apu spent six years at Del Monte Foods, in various Strategy
and General Management roles, ultimately joining the Executive team
as the SVP and GM for the $2.4B Consumer Products Division where he
led the development of a long term vision to focus on healthy
eating while creating internal and external alignment for a
sustainable platform for growth.
“I’ve been passionate about Healthy Living and have seen many
substantial changes across the industry. In my 25+ years in the
food and CPG industry, nothing I have seen comes close to the
exciting potential of TerraVia,” Apu Mody said. “I believe there
are opportunities across the grocery store driven by accelerating
demand for plant based foods and nutrition. And with TerraVia’s
unique portfolio of ingredients that provide better nutrition and
sustainability with outstanding taste, the Company is on the verge
of great things. I look forward to leading the team and realizing
our mission of making a difference for both people and the
planet.”
TerraVia has spent over a decade developing a proven portfolio
of algae ingredients and products that focus on harnessing the
power of algae, the mother of all plants and earth’s original
superfood. These include AlgaVia® Protein-Rich Whole Algae,
AlgaVia® Lipid-Rich Whole Algae, and AlgaWise® Ultra Omega-9, and
Thrive® Culinary Algae Oil which has the highest level of
monounsaturated fat and lowest level of saturated fat of any
culinary oil available on the market. In addition, TerraVia
produces AlgaPrime™ DHA, for the aquaculture and animal nutrition
markets, and AlgaPur™ oils, including a more sustainable
alternative to palm oil for the specialty personal care market.
About TerraVia
TerraVia is a next generation food, nutrition and specialty
ingredients company that harnesses the power of algae, the mother
of all plants and earth’s original superfood. With a portfolio of
breakthrough ingredients and manufacturing, the Company is well
positioned to help meet the growing need of consumer packaged goods
and established and emerging food manufacturers to improve the
nutritional profile of foods without sacrificing taste, and to
develop select consumer brands. The Company also manufactures a
range of specialty personal care ingredients for key strategic
partners. Headquartered in South San Francisco, the Company’s
mission is to create products that are truly better for people and
better for the planet. For additional information, please visit
TerraVia’s website at www.terravia.com.
Forward Looking
Statements
This press release contains certain forward-looking statements
within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995 about TerraVia, including statements that involve
risks and uncertainties concerning: TerraVia’s future strategic
focus; its ability to grow its business and accelerate
commercialization; expected executive changes; future demand for
plant-based foods and nutrition; customer demand and the attributes
of its products, including as to nutrition, taste, texture and
sustainability. When used in this press release, the words "will",
"expects", "intends" and other similar expressions and any other
statements that are not historical facts are intended to identify
those assertions as forward-looking statements within the meaning
of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any such
statement may be influenced by a variety of factors, many of which
are beyond the control of TerraVia, that could cause actual
outcomes and results to be materially different from those
projected, described, expressed or implied in this press release
due to a number of risks and uncertainties. Potential risks and
uncertainties include, among others: TerraVia’s limited operating
history; TerraVia’s limited history in launching and
commercializing products; commercial risk in deploying new
products; its ability to successfully develop and commercialize new
products; its ability to sell products; successful product trials
by customers and market acceptance and adoption of products by
consumers and end-users; the ability to obtain requisite regulatory
approvals for products; and its access, on favorable terms, to any
required financing. Accordingly, no assurances can be given that
any of the events anticipated by the forward-looking statements
will transpire or occur, or if any of them do so, what impact they
will have on the results of operations or financial condition
of TerraVia.
In addition, please refer to the documents that TerraVia
Holdings, Inc. files with the Securities and Exchange Commission,
including its Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on
Form 10-Q, as updated from time to time, for a discussion of these
and other risks. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on
forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this
press release. TerraVia is not under any duty to update any of the
information in this press release.
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TerraViaCorporate Communications:Genet
Garamendipress@terravia.com