Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. announced the appointment of Ajai Puri, a seasoned expert with decades of experience in the food and beverage industry, to its board of directors, effective February 19, 2024. Dr. Puri has held board member roles at several publicly-traded and privately-held companies in the food, beverage, and agricultural industries. Currently he is an active board member at Britannia Industries Ltd. (India), India?s larger independent food company; Olam Group Limited (Singapore), a leading global food and agriculture business; and IMI plc (U.K.), a specialist engineering and technology group.

Additionally, Dr. Puri serves as a board member at privately-held Califia Farms LP, a leading plant-based milks company. As part of his executive career, Ajai spent over 20 years at Minute Maid (part of The Coca-Cola Company) where he played an integral role in building the company?s global juice platform with products like Simply Orange? and Minute Maid Pulpy?.

Dr. Puri holds a B.S. from the University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore, India; an M.S. from the Central Food Technological Research Institute, Mysore, India; an M.B.A. from the Crummer Business School, Rollins College, and a Ph.D. in Food Science from the University of Maryland.