Aryzta Appoints New CEO for North America

Aryzta has announced the appointment of Dave Johnson as CEO North America and John Heffernan as Chief Strategy Officer. Both executives will also join the group executive committee.

Dave Johnson (61) is a native of Wisconsin, USA and brings to Aryzta an extensive background in the food industry. Most recently, he served for nine years at Barry Callebaut as president and CEO Americas, retiring in August 2017. Prior to Barry Callebaut, Johnson spent over 20 years with Kraft Foods Global Inc., serving in a number of senior positions and was a member of the global executive team.

John Heffernan (47) is a native of Dublin, Ireland and joins Aryzta from daa plc, which operates Dublin and Cork Airports; ARI, a global retailer in travel retail; and daa International. Heffernan has served as Chief Development Officer of daa plc for the past four years. From 2006 to 2014, he was the founder and CEO of a number of businesses in clean energy, including Clearpower and Aer Ltd.

Kevin Toland, Aryzta CEO, commented: “Dave has a track record of successfully leading businesses in turnaround, driving cultural transformation and business development. He has demonstrated a strong customer and market focus while delivering superior financial performance and growth. John also has a strong track record across a range of sectors bringing experience in strategic and business development with proven results. I look forward to working with Dave and John who will strengthen and deepen our team’s expertise as we focus on our core strengths and to returning Aryzta to performance and growth”.