Timothy McLevish, former Kraft Foods CFO, and Joseph E. Scalzo, former Simply Good Foods CEO, join Freshpet Board of Directors
New directors bring CPG leadership and strong financial expertise to support
continued momentum and growth
SECAUCUS, N.J., Aug. 21, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) (“Freshpet” or the “Company”) today announced that it has entered into a cooperation agreement with JANA Partners (“JANA”), one of the Company’s largest shareholders. As part of the agreement, Freshpet has appointed Timothy McLevish and Joseph E. Scalzo to its Board of Directors (“the Board”), effective immediately.
Mr. McLevish joins the Board as a Class I director with a term expiring at the Company’s 2024 annual meeting, and Mr. Scalzo joins as a Class II director with a term expiring at the Company’s 2025 annual meeting. In connection with this appointment, Freshpet’s Board has increased from ten to twelve directors, eleven of whom are independent.
Mr. McLevish brings over 20 years of operational and financial leadership experience across multiple industries, including in branded food and retail. Mr. McLevish served as Chief Financial Officer at five public companies including Carrier Corporation, Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc., Kraft Foods Group, Inc., Ingersoll-Rand Corporation and Mead Corporation.
Mr. Scalzo brings over 30 years of operational and leadership experience in the CPG industry, characterized by a proven track record of value creation, including as the Chief Executive Officer of high growth companies Simply Good Foods Company and WhiteWave Foods Inc. Mr. Scalzo also served as a senior executive at leading consumer companies including Dean Foods, The Gillette Company and The Coca-Cola Company.
“We are pleased to reach a constructive agreement with JANA. The Freshpet business has tremendous momentum and this agreement will help position us to continue delivering the results our shareholders expect,” said Billy Cyr, CEO of Freshpet. “We also welcome Tim and Joe to our team and are confident they will be valued colleagues and members of our Board as we work to continue capitalizing on the significant opportunities ahead and creating value for shareholders.”
Walter N. George, Chairman of Freshpet, said, “We have taken a thoughtful approach to Board refreshment to ensure our directors have the right skills to support our long-term strategy and value creation objectives. Freshpet will benefit greatly from Tim and Joe’s deep experience in large-scale, complex, and global consumer businesses, and we are pleased that they have joined our team.”
“I have long admired Freshpet’s business as it has transformed from a pet food disruptor to a scaled industry leader,” said Mr. McLevish. “I am thrilled to join the Company’s Board at this exciting time and look forward to bringing new perspectives and insight as the management team continues to execute on its long-term strategic growth plan.”
“Freshpet has built a category disrupting brand proposition in pet food with compelling sustainable competitive advantages, and I am very pleased to join the Board,” said Mr. Scalzo. “I am eager to support the Board and management team’s efforts to build on Freshpet’s industry-leading growth, enhanced operations, and leverage its significant competitive advantage to deliver long-term value for shareholders.”
Scott Ostfeld, Managing Partner at JANA, stated, “We commend Freshpet for the significant improvements in the business, team and Board made over the past year. Joe Scalzo and Tim McLevish are proven executives with exceptional track records of driving shareholder value, and we are confident that the Company is well positioned to realize its full potential for shareholders. We look forward to supporting Freshpet’s Board and management as it executes on its compelling growth strategy.”
Pursuant to the agreement, JANA has agreed to withdraw the director nominations it had previously submitted to the Company and will support the Board’s slate of directors at the 2023 Annual Meeting of Shareholders. JANA has also agreed to certain customary standstill provisions. The full cooperation agreement with JANA will be filed in a Current Report on Form 8-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Bank of America served as financial advisor and Sidley Austin LLP served as legal advisor to Freshpet.
About Timothy McLevish
Timothy (Tim) McLevish is a senior corporate finance executive and board member with deep experience in large-scale, complex and global consumer businesses. He has served as Chief Financial Officer at five public companies, including Carrier Corporation, Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc., Kraft Foods Group, Inc., Ingersoll-Rand Corporation and Mead Corporation. Mr. McLevish previously worked at Touche Ross & Co. and began his career at General Mills. He is a member of the board of directors of Revlon, Inc. and is a former member of the boards of directors of Conagra Brands, Inc., Kennametal, Inc., Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc., R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company, URS Corporation and US Foods, Inc.
About Joseph Scalzo
Joseph (Joe) Scalzo is an experienced consumer packaged goods executive and board member with significant operational, leadership and governance expertise. He has more than 30 years of experience at leading food and consumer companies, including serving as CEO of Simply Good Foods, Atkins Nutritionals, Inc., and WhiteWave Foods Company, as well as in senior executive roles at Dean Foods, The Gillette Company and The Coca-Cola Company. Mr. Scalzo began his career at Procter & Gamble. He is a member of the board of directors at Treehouse, Inc. and serves as Executive Vice Chairman and member of the board of directors of Simply Good Foods. He formerly served as a director of HNI Corp., Earthbound Farms and Focus Brands.
