Marfrig Restructures, Names New CEO

Marfrig Global Foods, the Brazilian company which became the world’s second largest beef processor in April after acquiring 51% of National Beef Processing for $969 million, has named Eduardo Miron as its new chief executive officer (CEO). Miron, who had been Marfrig’s chief financial officer since 2016, replaces Martin Secco as CEO.

Miron had served as the CEO of Keystone Foods in the U.S., which Marfrig sold last month to Tyson Foods for $2.5 billion. Keystone is the largest supplier of chicken nuggets to McDonald’s, and had 2017 sales of $2.8 billion, with operations in the United States, Korea, China, Malaysia, Thailand and Australia.

Marfrig also announced its business will operate under a new structure organized in two divisions: South America, gathering operations of 31 units in Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina and Chile; and North America, including National Beef and a beef patty factory in North Baltimore, Ohio.

“We want the two divisions to have independent goals and management, and that we can measure success in each one of them,” said Miron in a conference call with analysts on Tuesday.

Miron said Marfrig does not plan expansion in the short term, and the company will prioritize leverage reduction and sustainable growth after acquiring Natural Beef and selling Keystone to focus on the beef processing business.

Miguel Gularte, a veterinarian who has been working in the beef industry for 37 years, will lead Marfrig’s South American business. The North America division will continue to be led by National Beef's CEO Tim Klein.

Before joining Marfrig, Miron worked for ten years at Grupo Safra and for more than two decades at U.S.-based Cargill, where he held leadership positions in Brazil and the United States. Miron, 55, holds a degree in accounting, a graduate degree in finance and an MBA from Business School São Paulo/University of Toronto.

In a statement, Marfrig said it will redouble its efforts to create value supported by financial sustainability, by the integration of and capture of synergies at National Beef and, in South America, by a management strategy centered on operational excellence, on adding value to its products and brands and on revamping its structure.

“We will strive to create value in all dimensions of the business,” said Miron. “We want to be recognized as a sustainable company for our financial management, for the returns we offer shareholders and investors and for our relations with cattle producers, employees, clients and consumers.”