Cal-Maine Foods Inc. has appointed Keira Lombardo to be the company’s first-ever chief strategy officer, effective immediately, according to a release from the company. The new role demonstrates Cal-Maine’s “commitment to delivering long-term value through operational excellence, innovation, and deeper stakeholder engagement,” the company said.
Lombardo brings more than 20 years of experience with food and agriculture companies, having led transformation and growth strategies in multi-stakeholder food systems. She most recently served as chief executive officer of Dairy Max, a large-scale dairy organization representing approximately 700 farm families across eight states. Prior to that, Lombardo was a senior executive at Smithfield Foods, playing a key role in repositioning the company from a commodity protein producer to a branded, purpose-driven CPG business.
In her new role at Cal-Maine, she will partner on enterprise strategy, stakeholder engagement, corporate affairs, public relations and digital integration, and she will work to align the company’s internal vision with its external priorities.
About the Author
Andy Hanacek
Senior Editor
Andy Hanacek has covered meat, poultry, bakery and snack foods as a B2B editor for nearly 20 years, and has toured hundreds of processing plants and food companies, sharing stories of innovation and technological advancement throughout the food supply chain. In 2018, he won a Folio:Eddie Award for his unique "From the Editor's Desk" video blogs, and he has brought home additional awards from Folio and ASBPE over the years. In addition, Hanacek led the Meat Industry Hall of Fame for several years and was vice president of communications for We R Food Safety, a food safety software and consulting company.