Duffin-Maxwell to Lead the Dean Foods Research & Development Center
DALLAS, April 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Dean Foods Company (NYSE: DF)
announced today that Kelly Duffin-Maxwell has been appointed to the newly
created position of Executive Vice President, Research & Development (R&D) and
will report jointly to Gregg Engles, Dean Foods Chairman and CEO, and Joe
Scalzo, President and Chief Executive Officer of the WhiteWave Foods and
Morningstar divisions. Duffin-Maxwell has a long and successful track record
in Research and Development and will be the driving force behind the newly
opened Dean Foods Research & Development Center located in Broomfield,
Colorado.
“We are placing an increased emphasis on brand-building and innovation and
have strengthened our product development and marketing capabilities,” said
Engles. “Kelly’s knowledge in converging science and business to the
advantage of customers and consumers make her an important addition to Dean
Foods.”
Duffin-Maxwell brings 20 years of experience from Kraft Foods where her
most recent position was Senior Vice President, Breakthrough Innovation. In
this role, she was responsible for creating original consumer platforms to
accelerate the growth of Kraft Foods. She was also charged with building an
open innovation organization that leverages external partnerships and develops
future product pipeline growth for the company.
She has worked throughout the Kraft organization including in the Cheese,
Convenient Meals and Grocery categories, as well as serving as Director, Basic
Flavor and Ingredient Research for North America. For seven years, Kelly
worked in Munich, Germany, where she led an organization of 350 people across
24 R&D sites in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Among her
responsibilities was the Kraft Confectionery business, where she led R&D
efforts on some of Europe’s leading chocolate brands, including Milka(R) and
Toblerone(R).
About Dean Foods
Dean Foods Company is one of the leading food and beverage companies in
the United States. Its Dairy Group division is the largest processor and
distributor of milk and other dairy products in the country, with products
sold under more than 50 familiar local and regional brands and a wide array of
private labels. The Company’s WhiteWave Foods subsidiary markets and sells a
variety of well-known dairy and dairy-related products, such as
Silk(R)soymilk, Horizon Organic(R)milk and other dairy products and
International Delight(R) coffee creamers. WhiteWave Foods’ Rachel’s
Organic(R)brand is the largest organic milk brand and second largest organic
yogurt brand in the United Kingdom.
CONTACT: Corporate Communications, Marguerite Copel, +1-214-721-1273, or
Investor Relations, Barry Sievert, +1-214-303-3437
SOURCE Dean Foods Company