Organic dairy co-op Omsco has recruited David Williams, Arla’s global head of finance, members, milk & trading to the new role of CEO.
Described by Omsco as a “skilled and experienced business leader”, Williams has more than 25 years’ experience in the dairy sector and has held a number of senior-level finance roles at Arla, in addition to several board and senior executive posts at other major dairy suppliers.
Before joining Arla, he worked as corporate finance and strategy director for now-defunct co-op Milk Link for seven years, and prior to that, worked as its finance director. He will join Omsco at the start of April.
Williams will “oversee and drive forward the development of our value-added strategy based on investing in processing, products and brands”, said Omsco chairman Neil Kennedy.
The appointment also allowed Omsco’s MD Richard Hampton to focus on commercial and business development, reporting into Williams.
“In this important role, Richard will continue building on the strong strategic relationships that Omsco has established in recent years with like-minded customers and processors, as well as identifying opportunities to establish new partnerships to add value to our members’ organic milk going forward,” the dairy co-op said.
“I am delighted to announce David’s appointment as chief executive,” added Kennedy.
“He has proven leadership skills which are complemented by his having a deep knowledge of the dairy industry and a significant track record of working with leading farmer-owned dairy businesses. I believe the combination of both his dairy industry and co-operative experience makes David ideally positioned to lead the business as we enter the next phase in our growth and development.”
Commenting on his appointment, Williams said Omsco had “clearly made good progress in moving from simply being a broker of organic milk to establishing a strategic presence in value-added processing and more premium markets, both in the UK and overseas”.
He added: “The challenge now is to build upon these strong foundations and create evermore valuable and sustainable outlets for our members’ organic milk – a challenge I’m incredibly excited to take on.”
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