Landec Corporation to Nominate Two New Board Directors
May 24 2018 - 4:05PM
Landec Corporation (Nasdaq:LNDC), a leading innovator of
diversified health and wellness solutions within the branded
natural food and CDMO markets, and Wynnefield Capital, Inc.
announced today that Landec is nominating two new Board members at
its Annual Shareholders Meeting in October 2018. The two new
nominees are Andrew Powell, with over 12 years of public boardroom
experience with global life science companies, and Nelson Obus,
President and Chief Investment Officer of Wynnefield Capital. This
recommendation follows a series of collaborative discussions
between the Company and Wynnefield Capital, which is currently
Landec’s third largest shareholder with a 9.7% position and which
has held an ownership position that dates back nearly fifteen
years. Until the Landec Annual Shareholders Meeting in October, Mr.
Obus will participate in Board meetings as a non-voting observer.
Steve Goldby, Landec’s Chairman, stated, “We are pleased to
nominate Nelson Obus and Andrew Powell to the Landec Board of
Directors. Wynnefield Capital has been a long-time supporter of
Landec and we believe this collaborative agreement is in the best
interest of Landec and all our shareholders. Nelson brings a broad
range of board and financial experience to the table and will
provide additional investor perspectives to our Board while
Andrew’s deep knowledge of global life sciences will provide
tremendous insights for continued growth and profitability at
Lifecore. The Board and management team continue to be focused on
growing the Company’s natural food and CDMO businesses and we look
forward to leveraging the experience of our new directors to ensure
we are consistently delivering value to our shareholders.”
Mr. Obus stated, “As a long-term shareholder, I look forward to
working with the Landec Board and management team to contribute to
a strategic plan that leverages the Company’s strengths and creates
value for all shareholders. With my long relationship with Landec
and experience in the financial markets, I can provide a unique
investor perspective to the Company that will drive growth and
profitability.”
Gary Steele, a current Landec Director and Landec’s previous
Chairman and CEO, will retire from the Board in October, bringing
the total number of directors to ten, nine of whom are independent.
Gary Steele remained on the Landec Board of Directors for three
years while the company transitioned to new leadership under
Landec’s current CEO, Molly Hemmeter.
New Directors:
Nelson Obus is a co-founder, President and Chief Investment
Officer at Wynnefield Capital, Inc. He co-founded the firm with
Joshua Landes in November 1992. Mr. Obus manages the firm, oversees
its investment portfolio and is a board member at Layne Christensen
Company. Previously, he was the director of research at Schafer
Capital Management, Inc. Prior to that, Mr. Obus was a director of
sell side research in the equity sales department at Lazard Frères
& Co. Before that, he was a manager at Massachusetts department
of environmental management. Mr. Obus holds a BA in Politics from
New York University as well as an MA in Political Science and an
ABD in Politics from Brandeis University.
Andrew K. W. Powell is an experienced director and senior
executive with 25 years of global life sciences experience and 12
years of public company boardroom experience. Mr. Powell is
an accomplished lawyer and acted as General Counsel for a series of
publicly traded life sciences companies throughout his career,
culminating with a position as Senior Vice President, General
Counsel and Secretary at Medivation Inc., which was acquired by
Pfizer in 2016. Mr. Powell currently serves on a number of
boards, including Aclaris Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq:ACRS). He
received his undergraduate degree from the University of North
Carolina at Chapel Hill and a Juris Doctor degree from Stanford Law
School.
About Landec Corporation Landec Corporation
(Nasdaq:LNDC) is a leading innovator of diversified health and
wellness solutions within the packaged natural food and biomaterial
markets. Apio is a leader in branded, packaged fresh vegetables in
North America, utilizing its proprietary BreatheWay® packaging
technology to naturally extend the shelf life of fresh produce.
Apio combines this technology with the capabilities of a large
national fresh produce supplier to offer healthy fresh vegetable
products under the Eat Smart® brand to consumers through club and
retail grocery stores. Extending its reach into adjacent natural
food products, Landec recently acquired O Olive Oil®, an organic
and natural producer and marketer of olive oils and vinegars under
the O brand. Lifecore Biomedical, Landec’s biomaterial business, is
a fully integrated Contract Development and Manufacturing
Organization (CDMO) that offers expertise and capabilities in
fermentation, specialty formulation, aseptic filling and final
packaging for FDA regulated medical devices and drugs to customers
for applications in a wide array of markets including Ophthalmic,
Orthopedic and Oncology. For more information about the company,
visit Landec’s website at www.landec.com.
About Wynnefield Capital, Inc.Established in
1992, Wynnefield Capital, Inc. is a value investor specializing in
U.S. small cap situations that have company- or industry-specific
catalysts.
Contact Information:
At the Company:
Gregory S. Skinner
Vice President Finance and CFO
(650)
261-3677
Wynnefield Capital:Mark Semer, Kekst and
CompanyDaniel Yunger, Kekst and Company(212) 521-4800
Investor Relations:John Mills, Partner (646)
277-1254John.Mills@ICRINC.com
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