Leadership shakeup at Sargento Foods

PLYMOUTH, WIS. — Cheese manufacturer Sargento Foods Inc. has identified new roles for six members of its company.

The family-owned cheese maker’s new platform development team within its innovation division has a new senior vice president in Rod Hogan, as well as a new vice president in Holly Baumgart.

Additionally, Sargento shared that it promoted four others at the company, naming Ebru Basaran-Shul executive vice president of compliance, Erin Price president of the CPD division, Chris McCarthy president of food service and ingredients, and Jeremy Schellin vice president of strategic planning.

The senior vice president of new platform development, Mr. Hogan has worked for the company for 28 years. He previously took on a variety of roles in new business development, and research and development. Most recently vice president of new platform development, Mr. Hogan led “the identification and development of new growth opportunities across both the consumer products and foodservice and ingredients divisions,” according to Sargento.

Ms. Baumgart first joined Sargento in 2016 as vice president of information technology and has 15-plus years of experience in IT, business development and consulting. Now the company’s vice president of new platform development, she will support product initiatives, “including new opportunities related to the recent acquisition of Baker Cheese,” the company said. Sargento credited Ms. Baumgart, who most recently was vice president of strategic planning, with leading key corporate initiatives and strategies.

The company’s new executive vice president of compliance, Ms. Basaran-Shull will lead Sargento’s compliance department and report directly to chief executive officer Louie Gentine. The company said Ms. Basaran-Shull will develop and manage compliance strategies and initiatives while collaborating with departments throughout the organization. She also oversees food safety and quality, and corporate social responsibility. She has worked for the company since 2012, most recently holding the role of deputy general counsel and vice president of compliance.

Ms. Price, who is the new president of the CPD division, will develop the company’s CPD strategies and annual plans. She began her time at Sargento in 2007 as a marketing manager. Since then, the company said she has worked as the director of both marketing and integrated marketing, as well as vice president of strategic planning and president of food service and ingredients. Sargento credited her with “leading several successful core and new product initiatives, and establishing a roadmap for the digital and social marketing efforts.”

Now the president of foodservice and ingredients, Mr. McCarthy most recently was vice president of pricing and demand planning. A Sargento employee since 2013, his past roles also include director of integrated marketing and vice president of strategic planning. The company called him a “key contributor to several of the historical core and new product growth initiatives.”

Mr. Schellin, as vice president of strategic planning, will address long-term growth for the company while also leading strategic planning initiatives. He joined the company in 2017 and has since been involved with new product and core marketing rotations, including the launch of Sargento’s Balanced Breaks Cheese & Crackers.