Sun World International has hired Bernardo Calvo as its president and chief operating officer, reporting to CEO David Marguleas.
Calvo spent the bulk of his career at the Monsanto Co., now part of Bayer AG, in significant leadership roles across multiple countries, according to a news release.
Calvo held CEO roles in regions around the world, as well as global head for some of the company’s franchises with responsibility for thousands of team members and several billion dollars per year, the release said.
“One of our mantras at Sun World is that we innovate boldly and commercialize carefully, and the same goes for hiring,” Marguleas said in the release. “This was a position I created and have been looking to fill for quite some time, taking the time needed to find the right fit. Among his many Sun World management responsibilities, Bernardo will work with the commercial team to enhance our processes and the end-to-end product pipeline — all in service to our licensees.
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“Bernardo has already proven to be a person of equal parts talent and humility,” Marguleas continued. “The team at Sun World is thrilled to have him on board. I know he will make important contributions, while quickly fitting into our highly collaborative culture.”
Calvo was born and raised in Colombia and has lived in the U.S. for the past decade, the release said. He served as Monsanto’s CEO in Southern Latin America, where he improved market share in a meaningful way while managing a workforce of over 7,000 people the release said. As this geography is also an important piece of Sun World’s business, having Calvo’s regional expertise is a particular win for the company’s Latin American licensees, the release said.
“This was a unique career opportunity that I could not pass up,” Calvo said in the release. “Sun World has a solid, strategic focus on the future, but they are also deeply rooted in the company’s decades-long history as a grower. No other fruit breeder has this advantage and insight and I’m ready to further enhance the strategies while learning from new colleagues. I’m inspired by Sun World’s commitment to the success of their licensees and am happy to be part of the team that propels our teams’ and customers’ growth.”
