Quorn Foods CEO Marco Bertacca is to step down after five years leading the meat-free giant.
The Italian will be replaced by former Heineken UK MD David Flochel, who officially joins the business next month. Bertacca will leave the owner of the Quorn and Cauldron brands following a transition period “of a few months” where he will work alongside Flochel.
He joined Quorn in January 2020, navigating the business through global challenges including the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent turbulent inflation and cost of living crisis.
During his tenure, Quorn said he oversaw “many successful initiatives”, including the launch of the Marlow Ingredients division in 2023 – which allowed Quorn to make its mycoprotein available to other food companies for the first time as part of a push to “make nutritious, sustainable protein accessible to all”.
Bertacca also championed a drive by the company’s foodservice operation QuornPro and its customer the NHS to help it supply not just meat-free menu items, but also those made from a blend of meat and Quorn – to replace 100% meat items on menus.
“I would like to extend a huge thanks to the entire team for all the incredible things we’ve achieved in the five years I have been with the business,” Bertacca said.
“Despite the challenges with overall growth in the last few years, we have improved Quorn’s retail market share, achieved yearly growth in our foodservice & QSR business, and launched the new Marlow Ingredients business unit,” he added. “It’s been a huge privilege and honour to have played a part in accelerating Quorn’s mission to tackle climate change through great-tasting, sustainable food.”
On the appointment of his replacement, Bertacca said Quorn would be “in good hands”, with Flochel “bringing an incredible depth of knowledge and experience into the company, and we are already working closely together to ensure a smooth transition”.
The Frenchman’s most recent role was at Haleon, where he joined in April 2023 to set up and lead the carve-out management team of Haleon’s nicotine replacement therapy business outside of the US, as part of a divestment project.
Prior to this, he worked as Heineken’s MD for the UK market between October 2020 and April 2023, leading a business and culture turnaround.
From 2016 to 2020, he worked as CEO of the self-service retail business Selecta Group, while his past experience also includes several international leadership roles such as regional president (Europe and North America) of Mars Drinks at Mars.
Flochel said: “Quorn Foods has a strong history of success, but 2025 will be a reset year for the company. This is a brilliant opportunity to transform the business into the next stage of its journey and I am delighted to be taking on this new role. I believe that with the right focus and execution we can turn around the company and current category performance.”
Quorn Foods’ parent Marlow Foods registered losses of more than £60m last year, while sales slumped by 6.9% to £204.9m, according to its latest accounts, posted with Companies House last month.
The decline was mostly recorded in the supermarkets, as retail sales at the Monde Nissin-owned business fell 8.6% to £170.7m, amid a downturn across the meat-free and vegan categories.
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