San Mateo, CA
Paine Schwartz Partners, LLC (“Paine Schwartz”), a global leader in sustainable food chain investing, today announced that Peter Hawthorne is joining the firm as an Operating Director.
Mr. Hawthorne brings more than 35 years of experience, including decades of expertise in the food and agribusiness industries. He served as Vice President of Corporate Strategy & Development with Cargill for more than ten years, leading corporate development with an annual investment budget of more than $2 billion across operations in 70 countries. He also served as Chairman of the Board for three of Cargill’s largest joint ventures in Ardent Mills, North Star BlueScope Steel and NatureWorks.
Kevin Schwartz, Chief Executive Officer and a founding Partner of Paine Schwartz, said, “Peter is an accomplished business leader with significant experience identifying and executing on attractive opportunities in the global food and agribusiness sectors. He has deep relationships across the food and agribusiness industries with an extensive track record of growing businesses and coordinating complex transactions. He’s a great fit for Paine Schwartz and we are pleased to have him join our team.”
Mr. Hawthorne said, “I look forward to applying my global experience investing in, building and running ag, food, and related tech and industrial companies. I have known and respected the team at Paine Schwartz for their leadership in sustainable food chain investing. I am excited about working closely with them as part of the overall investment process and building value at portfolio companies.”
About Peter Hawthorne
Peter Hawthorne previously served as Vice President of Corporate Strategy and Development at Cargill, from 2006 to 2018. He chaired the boards of Ardent Mills LLC, the leading flour milling company in North America, North Star BlueScope Steel, a leading supplier in the steel industry and NatureWorks LLC, the leading global bio-polymers company. He currently serves as Chairman of the Advisory Board of Citrofrut S.A., Mexico’s largest juice producer. Previously he worked at The Chase Manhattan Bank, N.A., the Bain & Company and the Carlson Companies. Mr. Hawthorne has a B.A. in Economics from Brown University and an MBA from Stanford University.
About Paine Schwartz Partners
A global leader in sustainable food chain investing, Paine Schwartz Partners is a private equity firm focused exclusively on investment opportunities in the fast-growing, dynamic global food and agribusiness sectors. The firm’s investment, operations and finance professionals invest throughout cycles across the food and agribusiness value chain, and bring a collaborative and active management approach to portfolio companies. For further information, please see www.paineschwartz.com.
Contacts:
Andy Brimmer / Aaron Palash
Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher
+1 212-355-4449
