Dairy business First Milk has appointed Mike Gallacher as its new chief executive. He replaces Kate Allum and will start his new job on 18 March.
Gallacher has spent most of his career with Mars Inc. where he held a series of senior leadership positions, most recently as UK Managing Director for Mars Petcare. He led significant business turnarounds in Asia for Mars as well as working in regional leadership positions in both Asia Pacific and Europe. Prior to Mars, he was an Army Officer for eight years.
First Milk chairman Sir Jim Paice MP commented: “Mike has all the attributes to put our business back where we want it to be. He has considerable leadership qualities, has turned around businesses in different geographies, and has experience in some of our key export markets. He demonstrated throughout the interview process that he has rapidly built high performing teams and organisations throughout his career and I look forward to working with him.”
"On behalf of the Board, member and employees, I would like to thank Kate Allum for her drive and leadership over the last six years and wish her well for the future."
Gallacher added: “Over the last few weeks I have been interviewed by the Board, met the executive team and visited a number of sites. While the dairy market is challenging at present, I am excited about leading the First Milk business. Over the coming weeks I look forward to meeting farmer members, employees, partners and customers as we work together to address those challenges with urgency and focus.”
