Dive Brief:
- Former Cargill executive and alternative protein veteran Nicole Johnson-Hoffman has joined Meati Foods’ board of directors. She will advise the company as it expands across the U.S.
- Prior to Meati, Johnson was the CEO at cultivated meat producer Believer Foods. She has more than two decades of leadership experience in the food and agriculture sectors.
- Johnson joins Meati Foods as it starts to scale across the U.S. Most recently, the company launched a series of products at Whole Foods.
Dive Insight:
Johnson-Hoffman expressed “frustration” with the food industry in a press release announcing her appointment. She pointed to how organizations, brands and interest groups have “put the onus of change on the consumer, asking them to shop our way out of problems caused by the food industry.”
“It’s the responsibility of incumbent industry leaders and disruptors like Meati to bring solutions that work for consumers,” she said.
Nicole Johnson-Hoffman, board member at Meati
Permission granted by Meati
Meati commenced its large-scale retail launch in 2021. It hired CPG veterans Elizabeth Fikes and Joseph Johnston in March to run its supply chain operations.
Fikes came from Stanley Black & Decker where she was the chief transformation officer and manufacturing strategy and optimization leader for global operations for about two years. Before that, she spent time at PepsiCo where she was vice president of global operations and transformation. Johnston spent most of the last decade at Sabra as vice president of its supply chain.
Johnson-Hoffman has been at the forefront of managing the global beef industry’s chains and making them more sustainable, the company said, and her experience at Cargill brings a unique perspective to Meati. The Minnetoka, Minnesota-based Cargill is the largest privately held companies in the U.S. based on revenue, according to Forbes and a huge influencer in the food and agriculture sectors. Having managed supply chain operations for an organization of that size, Johnson-Hoffman is well positioned to lead Meati through their next phase of growth.
Johnson-Hoffman is also a former attorney, which could be a benefit to Meati, as the industry depends on decisions made by the FDA and USDA.
During her time at Believer Meats, Johnson-Hoffman oversaw the rebranding from Future Meat Technologies to Believer in November 2022 and the opening of a new facility in the U.S. Meati opened a new manufacturing facility known as Mega Ranch in January, which was a pivotal step to their national launch as they were preparing to make to make enough products out of mycelium to supply more than 7,000 retailers and restaurants.
As the former CEO of Believer Meats, Johnson-Hoffman guided the company through similar phases that Meati is experiencing right now.