FoodChain ID, one of the world’s leading food safety, testing, and sustainability organizations, today announced that its Board of Directors appointed Conor Kearney as CEO, effective immediately.  Mr. Kearney succeeds Brad Riemenapp, who led FoodChain ID as CEO for more than five years before passing away in May after bravely battling cancer.

Kearney joined FoodChain ID in 2021 and most recently served as Interim CEO during Mr. Riemenapp’s medical leave of absence.  Prior to that, Kearney was FoodChain ID’s Senior Vice President of Strategy and Operations.  Before joining FoodChain ID, he spent 11 years at Staples Inc. in numerous leadership roles, most recently managing a multi-billion product division, and five years at McKinsey & Company.  Kearney earned his MBA from Harvard Business School and a bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Dartmouth College.

Ted Rainaud, Managing Director at Berkshire Partners, stated, “Conor has already had a significant impact on FoodChain ID.  His collaborative leadership style and ability to rally the organization to achieve its goals make him the absolute right person to lead FoodChain ID in the next stage of its growth journey.”

“Brad was a great mentor to me, and I’m committed to continue building on his vision and delivering on FoodChain ID’s mission to make the food supply chain safer and more transparent,” said Kearney.

“Brad will be missed, as a leader and friend.  We are fortunate that his strengths as CEO included recruiting a great leadership team and thoughtful succession planning.  We are excited about FoodChain ID continuing to reshape the food safety and compliance landscape under Conor’s leadership,” said Blake Gottesman, Managing Director at Berkshire Partners.

Berkshire Partners acquired FoodChain ID in 2020 as part of a recapitalization transaction.

About FoodChain ID

FoodChain ID is a trusted provider to over 30,000 companies across the global supply chain, with technology-enabled solutions and expertise to keep the food supply chain safe and transparent. Service areas include food safety, regulatory compliance, product certification, testing, and product development. Visit www.foodchainid.com for more information.

About Berkshire Partners

Berkshire Partners is a 100% employee-owned, multi-sector specialist investor in private and public equity. The firm’s private equity team invests in well-positioned, growing companies across technology & communications, consumer, healthcare, and services & industrials. Since its inception, Berkshire Partners has made more than 150 private equity investments and has a strong history of collaborating with management teams to grow the companies in which it invests. For additional information about Berkshire Partners, please visit  www.berkshirepartners.com.