Marfrig Global Foods S.A. has announced to its shareholders and the general market that, in a meeting held on 15 January, the Board of Directors of the Company accepted the resignation of Sergio Rial from the rule of Chief Executive Officer of Marfrig Global Foods and appointed Martin Secco Arias, currently the CEO of Marfrig Beef Southern Cone, to replace him. This appointment will be effective from 16 February 2015.

Together with the Chairman of the Board, Marcos Antonio Molina dos Santos, Mr Rial has led the Company over the last two and half years, during which period they, together with the executive team, have implemented the 'Focus to Win' strategy, which significantly improved the integration and performance of the Company.

Mr Secco has worked in Marfrig Global Foods for over eight years, beginning with the acquisition of Frigorífico Tacuarembó in Uruguay, a company which his family owned and in which he was a shareholder. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Universidad Católica Dámaso Antonio Larrañaga and a graduate degree in Senior Management from Universidad de Montevideo. His career is marked by long experience in the animal protein industry and he recently obtained important results at the units under his command (Uruguay, Argentina, Chile and the state of Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil).

Mr Secco said: “The strategy of Marfrig Global Foods will not change. Our commitment to pursuing positive free cash flow, margin expansion, sustainable growth and a multi-annual deleveraging process remains the same. We remain committed to creating value for the company.”

Commenting on his departure, Mr Rial said: “As part of the succession process, we have an Executive Committee that is prepared to effectively take decisions, with Martin at the helm and the other CEOs leading their respective business units. Martin participated on the development of the new strategy in 2013, working together with the Vice-Presidents, who are also members of the Executive Committee and are committed as a group to effectively executing the 'Focus to Win' strategy.”

Mr Molina commented: “We believe we have already given the market very clear signs of our commitment to transparency, strong focus on cash generation and, above all, governance. The board and its committees will continue to work in 2015 to oversee and support the management team. Marfrig remains fully committed to its strategy of reducing costs and de-leveraging over the coming years.

“The Board of Directors is very familiar with Martin's competence and knows that he is the right person to continue implementing the “FOCUS TO WIN” plan and to execute Marfrig’s strategy," added Mr Molina.

The Company thanked Mr Rial for his immeasurable contribution to Marfrig Global Foods and wished him continued success in his future.