Ajinomoto North America Names Dave Gardner President/CEO
Ajinomoto Foods North America Inc. elevated Dave Gardner to president/CEO on April 1, although it was just publicized today. Gardner had been chief supply chain officer since 2022.
Gardner replaces Hiroshi Kaho, who has been promoted to executive officer & executive vice president, chief human resources officer for the Tokyo-based parent company, Ajinomoto Co. Inc.
Gardner brings more than 35 years of food industry experience to the role, joining the company from Amy's Kitchen, the Petaluma, Calif.-based natural and organic frozen foods company, where he was chief operating officer. Earlier in his career, he held leadership roles at Ingredion Incorporated, including as vice president of North America supply chain and vice president of North America manufacturing.
Ajinomoto Foods North America is a frozen foods manufacturer for both retail and foodservice with more than $1 billion in sales in the U.S. alone. Brands include Ajinomoto, Ling Ling, Tai Pei and José Olé.
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Dave Fusaro
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Dave Fusaro has served as editor in chief of Food Processing magazine since 2003. Dave has 30 years experience in food & beverage industry journalism and has won several national ASBPE writing awards for his Food Processing stories. Dave has been interviewed on CNN, quoted in national newspapers and he authored a 200-page market research report on the milk industry. Formerly an award-winning newspaper reporter who specialized in business writing, he holds a BA in journalism from Marquette University. Prior to joining Food Processing, Dave was Editor-In-Chief of Dairy Foods and was Managing Editor of Prepared Foods.