Recent leadership appointments

Industry leaders across the food and beverage trade have announced several senior appointments aimed at driving international growth, operational excellence, and digital transformation.

Group leadership & global strategy

Valerie Diele-Braun, Nexture

New role: appointed as chief executive officer, effective March 2, 2026, taking over from Gabriele Del Torchio, who transitions to executive chairman. She will lead global operations and drive growth across a portfolio including functional ingredients, fillings, and gelato ingredients.
Background: a veteran with over 30 years of experience in specialty ingredients and chemicals, she previously served as CEO of IMCD and CABB. Her career includes senior roles at Archroma, DSM Nutritional Products, and Givaudan.
Purpose: her appointment is intended to guide Nexture through its next phase of development, focusing on organic growth, sustainable development, and the integration of recent acquisitions.

David Titman, Bio&Me

New role: joins as the newly created chief marketing officer to support scale-up ambitions.
Background: brings extensive FMCG experience, including leading marketing for Who Gives A Crap in the UK and Europe. He previously served as marketing director at McVitie’s and spent 15 years at Unilever.
Purpose: Titman aims to build a distinctive brand ecosystem and accelerate company growth through advanced marketing efforts.

Michael Cheeseman, Bio&Me

New role: promoted to the newly established position of international director.
Background: Bio&Me’s first employee, formerly working in the marketing department.
Purpose: he will focus on unlocking growth opportunities outside the UK, building distribution and brand awareness in priority overseas markets.

Operational excellence & supply chain

Dr Uwe Boltersdorf, Beneo

New role: appointed chief operating officer (COO) of Beneo. He will manage production, technology, supply chain, quality, and sustainability.
Background: holds a doctorate in chemical engineering with over 20 years of international management experience at Bayer AG, Lanxess AG, and thyssenkrupp AG.
Purpose: Boltersdorf succeeds Dr Mike Eberle and will leverage his international experience to support Beneo’s growth trajectory while continuing his existing COO role at sister company CropEnergies AG.

Alyson Slapkauskas, Mecatherm

New role: appointed head of global supply chain & operational excellence, a role that complements her existing position as CEO for North America for the ABI and Mecatherm brands.
Background: with over 25 years of experience, she has managed multi-site operations in the aerospace and defence sectors before becoming CEO of ABI in 2023.
Purpose: her expanded global role is part of a strategy to create sustainable value and leverage complementary expertise across the group’s global teams.

Sales, growth & digitalisation

Marcus Hudson, Wholebake

New role: joins as head of sales and brands. He will focus on strengthening retail and distributor partnerships and expanding the international footprint.
Background: possesses over 25 years of experience in the food and drink industry, including serving as sales director at Clearly Drinks.
Purpose: Hudson was appointed to help significantly scale Wholebake’s branded portfolio—specifically Brynmor flapjacks and Bounce protein balls—as the business targets rapid growth in Europe and beyond.

Amy Gurlitt, TraceGains

New role: appointed as account executive for the DACH region (Germany, Austria, and Switzerland).
Background: over a decade of experience in IT and cybersecurity sales with companies such as Malwarebytes and Trellix, specialising in market adoption for emerging technologies.
Purpose: her role is critical to TraceGains’ European expansion, helping food and beverage manufacturers move from legacy processes to digital-first solutions for compliance and supply chain management.

Nick Leeder, ITI Group

New role: appointed as strategic advisor.
Background: an expert in advanced manufacturing for the World Economic Forum with previous senior leadership roles at Dyson, Philips, and SKF.
Purpose: Leeder will support ITI Group’s rapid growth and help clients realise more value from their operations through industrial transformation and digitalisation.