OAK BROOK, Ill., March 5, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- TreeHouse
Foods, Inc. (NYSE: THS) announced today that it has appointed
Steven Oakland as Chief Executive
Officer and President of the Company. Mr. Oakland also joined the
Board of Directors effective March 2,
2018. Mr. Oakland will assume his executive duties on
March 26, 2018. He succeeds
Sam K. Reed, Chairman, President and
Chief Executive Officer of TreeHouse Foods, who will serve as
non-Executive Chairman of the Board through July 1, 2018, at which time Mr. Reed will retire
from the Company.
Mr. Oakland was most recently Vice Chair and President, U.S.
Food and Beverage at The J.M. Smucker Company (NYSE: SJM) where he
led the $5 billion U.S. Food and
Beverage businesses across all channels, including U.S. Retail
Coffee, U.S. Retail Consumer Foods, Natural Foods, U.S. Retail
Sales, and Marketing Services.
"Steve brings to TreeHouse a wealth of experience moving quickly
to assimilate and integrate complex businesses, designing highly
effective organizations and improving the growth and profitability
of acquired companies," said Dennis
O'Brien, Lead Independent Director of the Board of Directors
of TreeHouse Foods. "His leadership principles and practices are
the right fit for Treehouse and will serve him well as a catalyst
to drive revenue growth, supply chain optimization and
organizational effectiveness."
"Steve is a proven leader," Mr. O'Brien continued. "He has been
central to transforming the Smucker Company from a fruit spreads
company to a best in class Fortune 500 marketer and manufacturer
spanning multiple consumer packaged goods categories. Importantly,
Steve has been integral to Smucker's consistent and strong track
record of delivering long-term shareholder value."
"I am thrilled about the opportunity to lead this great team,
given its unparalleled leadership in private label food and
beverage," said Mr. Oakland. "No company is better positioned than
TreeHouse to capitalize on the growing importance of private label
in today's dynamic retail landscape, which is a credit to
Sam Reed and his vision. The
initiatives that Sam and the team have put in place are the right
ones, and I look forward to hitting the ground running to improve
our execution and performance in the near term, while assessing the
long-term strategic drivers of the portfolio."
"I fully support the Board's appointment of Steve and am pleased
to hand over the reins to him. I'm delighted that we have attracted
someone with a deep understanding of food and beverage and private
label across all channels of distribution and classes of trade,"
said Mr. Reed. "Steve brings an independent strategic perspective
of how we can build and strengthen our TreeHouse going forward, and
I believe his experience and expertise will prove invaluable." Upon
his retirement as non-Executive Chairman, Mr. Reed will continue to
serve in a non-executive advisory capacity to Mr. Oakland through
the end of the year.
Mr. Oakland has a distinguished track record with The J.M.
Smucker Company. Prior to his Vice Chair and President role, he had
served as President, Coffee and Away From Home; President,
International, Foodservice, and Natural Foods; President, U.S.
Retail - Smucker's®, Jif®, and Hungry Jack®; Vice President and
General Manager, Consumer Oils and Baking; Vice President and
General Manager, Foodservice; and General Manager of J.M.
Smucker Canada. He currently serves
on the Boards of Directors of Foot Locker, Inc., Foster Farms, and
and MTD Products Corporation.
Mr. Oakland earned his Bachelor of Arts Degree in marketing and
economics from Mount Union College.
ABOUT TREEHOUSE FOODS
TreeHouse Foods, Inc. is a manufacturer of packaged foods and
beverages with a network of manufacturing facilities across
the United States, Canada, and
Italy that focuses primarily on
private label products for both retail grocery and food away from
home customers. We manufacture shelf stable, refrigerated, frozen
and fresh products, including beverages (single serve beverages,
coffees, teas, creamers, powdered beverages, and smoothies); meals
(cereal, pasta, macaroni and cheese, and side dishes); baked goods
(refrigerated and frozen dough, cookies, and crackers); condiments
(pourable and spoonable dressing, dips, pickles, and sauces) and
snacks (nuts, trail mix, bars, dried fruits, and vegetables). We
have a comprehensive offering of packaging formats and flavor
profiles, and we also offer natural, organic, and preservative free
ingredients in many categories. Our strategy is to be the leading
supplier of private label food and beverage products by providing
the best balance of quality and cost to our customers.
Additional information, including TreeHouse's most recent
statements on Forms 10-Q and 10-K, may be found at TreeHouse's
website, http://www.treehousefoods.com.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This press release contains "forward-looking" statements within
the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995. These forward-looking statements and other information are
based on our beliefs as well as assumptions made by us using
information currently available. The words "anticipate,"
"believe," "estimate," "project," "expect," "intend," "plan,"
"should," and similar expressions, as they relate to us, are
intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements
reflect our current views with respect to future events and are
subject to certain risks, uncertainties, and assumptions. Should
one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should
underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary
materially from those described herein as anticipated, believed,
estimated, expected, or intended. We do not intend to update these
forward-looking statements following the date of this press
release. Such forward-looking statements, because they relate
to future events, are by their very nature subject to many
important factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking
statements contained in this press release and other public
statements we make. Such factors include the risks that are
set forth in the Risk Factors section, the Legal Proceedings
section, the Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial
Condition and Results of Operations section, and other sections of
our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the three and nine months
ended September 30, 2016, our Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016, and from time to time in our
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. You are
cautioned not to unduly rely on such forward-looking statements,
which speak only as of the date made, when evaluating the
information presented in this press release. TreeHouse
expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to disseminate
any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement contained
herein, to reflect any change in its expectations with regard
thereto, or any other change in events, conditions or circumstances
on which any statement is based.
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SOURCE TreeHouse Foods, Inc.