Bord Iascaigh Mhara chief executive Jim O’Toole is to move to Bord Bia where he will head up the organisation from November 1st.
Mr O’Toole is the second BIM chief executive to move to Bord Bia.
His predecessor, Tara McCarthy, was just over a year with BIM when she was appointed to succeed Aidan Cotter as Bord Bia head in January 2017.
Ms McCarthy moved to Alltech in June of this year, and Michael Murphy took over as interim Bord Bia chief executive.
Bord Bia chairman s Dan MacSweeney said “on behalf of the board, I’m delighted to announce the appointment of Jim O'Toole as CEO of Bord Bia”.
“We welcome Jim to Bord Bia and the knowledge, experience and insight he brings to the role and to the organisation,” he said.
“ His considerable experience in the agri-food sector, depth of international experience and strong corporate, strategic and operational expertise makes him an ideal leader to deliver strategic transformation, building on the great work of his predecessors and the rest of the Bord Bia team,” McSweeney said.
“ We look forward to working with Jim, and are confident his leadership will ensure Bord Bia continues to deliver on its strategic mission to promote sustainably-produced Irish produce to customers around the world,” he said.
He also paid tribute to interim chief executive Michael Murphy.
Minister for Agriculture, Food and Marine Charlie McConalogue said that O’Toole “brings a wealth of knowledge, experience and strategic understanding of our agri-food sector”.
“I have worked closely with Jim in his current role as CEO of BIM, and he will be an excellent CEO for Bord Bia. This is a very exciting time for our agri-food industry and Jim will lead a very talented team during one of the most defining periods for our sector,” he said.
“I particularly thank Michael Murphy, who will continue to lead Bord Bia as Interim CEO until November. Along with Minister of State Martin Heydon T.D., I look forward to leading a major agri-food trade mission to key Asian markets (Japan, Singapore and Vietnam) with Bord Bia and my Department, starting at the end of August,” McConalogue said.
The appointment was also welcomed by junior ministers Martin Heydon and Pippa Hackett.
O’Toole said he is “deeply honoured to be appointed as Bord Bia’s CEO and I look forward to working with the Board and the talented team in Bord Bia to implement the recently published strategy”.
“ I have been most fortunate to have previously spent over twenty years in Bord Bia and more recently have had the privilege of being the CEO of Bord Iascaigh Mhara for over five years. I sincerely wish my BIM colleagues the best for the future and look forward to continuing the close collaboration between the two agencies,” he said.
