Peter Erickson, PFS Board Chair Steps Down and Ken Powell Assumes Chairmanship, Jon Nudi Joins Board

June 18, 2019

PFS first trip to Africa
PFS co-founders Jeff Dykstra, Peter Erickson and John Mendesh on their first visit to Zambia together to visit a PFS client.

Partners in Food Solutions founding board chair, Peter Erickson, is stepping down from our board of directors but will remain as a senior advisor for our organization. Peter is one of the three founders of Partners in Food Solutions and has guided our growth from a small pilot called the "Science and Technology Transfer Initiative" within General Mills, to an independent nonprofit with a pool of over 1000 expert volunteers serving entrepreneurial African food companies in eleven countries across the continent. We are incredibly grateful for Peter's wisdom, passion and guidance over these past ten years. 

“Peter has been a faithful steward of our mission since day one.  We will miss his voice on the board but we are grateful he will remain close to PFS as a regular advisor to our work and mentor to me,” said PFS CEO and cofounder Jeff Dykstra.

We are proud to announce that Ken Powell, former chairman and CEO of General Mills, will assume the role of chairman of the board. The idea for Partners in Food Solutions evolved from a conversation that Ken had with Former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, who asked him what General Mills could do to help solve the problem of food insecurity in Africa. He took that challenge to heart and has championed our mission ever since.

Jon Nudi, General Mills group president for North America retail, has also joined our board of directors. Jon has been with General Mills since 1993 and has served in several different global leadership roles during his career there. Jon had the opportunity recently to visit PFS staff and clients in Ghana where he saw the impact of our work firsthand. 

As PFS grows, we look forward to the guidance and perspective that both Ken and Jon bring from their many years in leadership. “Having Ken step into our board chair role feels like a perfect fit.  Ken was the catalyst behind PFS and as General Mills CEO helped nurture our work from the start. His decades of global leadership experience will be a real asset for us in the years to come," Dykstra said. "Jon represents the next generation of excellent leaders at General Mills.  We are excited to work with him to continue to make an impact across Africa and throughout General Mills."

General Mills
General Mills, the founding member of Partners in Food Solutions, is one of the world’s leading food companies, operating in more than 100 countries and headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Cargill
Cargill is an international producer and marketer of food, agricultural, financial and industrial products and services. Founded in 1865, the privately held company employs 150,000 people in 70 countries.
DSM
With a nearly 30,000 strong team and unparalleled capabilities built on more than a century of cutting-edge science, dsm-firmenich is a trailblazer in the reinvention, manufacturing, and combination of vital nutrients, flavors, and fragrances.
Bühler
Bühler is a global leader in the field of process engineering, in particular production technologies and services for producing foods and manufacturing advanced materials. Bühler operates in over 140 countries and has a over 10,000 employees worldwide.
Hershey
The Hershey Company, headquartered in Hershey, PA, is a global confectionery leader known for bringing goodness to the world through its chocolate, sweets, mints and other great-tasting snacks.
Ardent Mills
Ardent Mills is committed to transforming how the world is nourished.
Smucker's
Inspired by more than 120 years of business success and five generations of family leadership, The J. M. Smucker Company makes food that people and pets love. The Company’s portfolio of 40+ brands, which are found in 90 percent of U.S. homes and countless restaurants, include iconic products consumers have always loved such as Folgers, Jif and Milk-Bone plus new favorites like Café Bustelo, Smucker’s Uncrustables and Rachael Ray Nutrish.