Frucor Suntory has appointed Ian Roberts as its new Chief Supply Officer as it prepares for its multi-beverage partnership with Beam Suntory.
Over Roberts’ career, he served as the Executive General Manager of Retail at Visy and spent over two decades at Lion in various senior Supply Chain Director roles, where he played a vital role in the company’s transformation of its supply chain process as Chief Supply Chain and Technical Director.
Darren Fullerton, CEO of Frucor Suntory, was delighted with the appointment, saying they are thrilled to welcome Roberts to Suntory.
“His extensive experience in leading supply chain transformation and his unwavering commitment to safety, quality, and continuous improvement perfectly align with our values and the Yatte Minahare spirit that drives our global Suntory business.”
Roberts will be leading the trans-Tasman supply chain, including the business operations based in Wiri, New Zealand, and the highly anticipated $400+ million manufacturing and distribution facility currently under construction in Ipswich, Queensland.
Roberts said that Frucor Suntory has experienced an incredible growth trajectory, and with the future Suntory Oceania partnership ahead, he is excited to join the business during this critical period of transformation.
“Suntory’s core values of craftsmanship, innovation, and sustainability align perfectly with my own commitment to delivering excellence and driving positive change in the supply chain. Together, we will work towards building a world-class supply chain that will deliver exceptional results for our multi-beverage portfolio in Oceania.”
Frucor Suntory recently announced that it would be partnering with Beam Suntory to create a $3 billion multi-beverage group, Ocean Suntory, which will become the fourth largest beverage group in the region and is set to be operational in mid-2025 in Australia and 2026 in New Zealand.
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