- Mars announces former Unilever executive Karina Zimerfeld will head R&D for the Mars Food & Nutrition business within Mars, Incorporated.
- Zimerfeld will serve as a member of the Mars Food & Nutrition Leadership Team, and the Mars, Incorporated, Global R&D Leadership Team.
- The appointment demonstrates Mars Food & Nutrition’s commitment to innovation, science and technology.
London, England (March 13, 2023) – Mars Food & Nutrition named Karina Zimerfeld as Vice President of the business’ R&D function, reporting to Shaid Shah, President Mars Food & Nutrition. Zimerfeld will serve as a member of the Global Food & Nutrition Leadership Team, and the Mars, Incorporated, Global R&D Leadership Team.
The Mars Food & Nutrition business is headquartered in London and has 2000 Associates across 30 countries working to bring to life the segment’s Purpose: Better Food Today. A Better World Tomorrow. The business is building a vibrant, fast-growing portfolio of nutritious, flavorful, convenient products that delight consumers. Today, it includes best-loved brands such as BEN’S ORIGINAL™, MASTERFOODS™, SEEDS OF CHANGE™, TASTY BITE™, and DOLMIO™. Its recent innovations include BEN’S ORIGINAL™ One Pan Creations and BEN’S ORIGINAL™ Plant Powered range, which won the 2023 U.K. Product of the Year award in the vegetarian category.
In her role Zimerfeld will lead R&D for Mars Food & Nutrition, including overseeing R&D Innovation, Quality and Food Safety, Science & Technology, and Scientific & Regulatory Affairs.
Shah said: “Food has a unique role in the fabric of humanity. It not only fuels us, but brings people together, is central to our health and wellness, and connects us with our planet. I’m thrilled to have Karina join us as we continue our journey as an innovative, purpose driven food business of tomorrow. With 25-years of deep experience in innovation, science and technology Karina will play an integral role in helping us pursue further growth and innovation, drive value for consumers and make a positive impact on society.”
Zimerfeld joins Mars after an outstanding 25-year career with Unilever, where she was most recently Global Vice President R&D for Unilever’s foodservice business unit leading it through a significant business transformation with numerous initiatives focused on digital, customer-centric, healthy and sustainable innovations. Prior, she held several senior R&D leadership roles based in Latin America, Europe and globally for multiple food and nutrition categories, both in business-to-consumer and business-to-business.
Zimerfeld said: “As a food lover myself, I’m excited to join the Mars Food & Nutrition team and look forward to leading the charge to use science, technology and innovation to capture opportunities for consumers, while in parallel creating a better, more sustainable world of food. And with evolving consumer needs, a pressing climate change, and advances in technology, this is an incredibly exciting time to be in Food!”
Zimerfeld has a degree in food engineering and an MBA, underpinning a strong track record of leveraging science, technology and external partnerships to create value for brands and growth opportunities for businesses.
About Mars, Incorporated
Mars, Incorporated is driven by the belief that the world we want tomorrow starts with how we do business today. As a global, family-owned business, Mars is transforming, innovating, and evolving to make a positive impact on the world.
Across our diverse and expanding portfolio of quality confectionery, food, and pet care products and services, we employ 140,000+ dedicated Associates. With almost $45 billion in annual sales, we produce some of the world’s best-loved brands including Ben’s Original™, CESAR®, Cocoavia®, DOVE®, EXTRA®, KIND®, M&M’s®, SNICKERS®, PEDIGREE®, ROYAL CANIN®, and WHISKAS®. We are creating a better world for pets through our global network of pet hospitals and diagnostic services – including AniCura, BANFIELD™, BLUEPEARL™, Linnaeus and VCA™ – using cutting edge technology to develop breakthrough programs in genetic health screening and DNA testing.
For more information about Mars, please visit Mars.com . Join us on Facebook(Opens a new window), Twitter(Opens a new window), Instagram(Opens a new window), LinkedIn(Opens a new window) and YouTube.(Opens a new window)
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