People: Nutreco appoints new Sustainability Director
Nutreco is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr José Villalón (56) as its new Corporate Sustainability Director with effect from 7 April. With this appointment, Nutreco intends to bring its sustainability strategy to the next level.
José Villalón will be responsible for the implementation of Nutreco’s global Sustainability Vision towards 2020 that is based on clear ambitions in the areas of people, planet and profit. This vision and the related goals are an integral part of Nutreco’s corporate strategy for driving sustainable growth. Making sustainability an integral part of everyday business will ensure Nutreco can contribute to the Feeding the Future challenge: feeding nine billion people sustainably in 2050.
Villalón has more than 25 years of experience in the aquaculture industry. During his career he has operated a Mexico-based consulting firm that worked with private industry on technical shrimp production protocols and farm accounting systems, managed shrimp farms in Mexico and he has overseen new product development and market penetration in Europe and Japan for AquaNova. Villalón holds a Master of Science degree in fisheries biology from the University of Washington in Seattle and a Bachelor of Science degree in biological sciences from Florida International University.
Currently José Villalón is the Vice President and Managing Director of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Aquaculture Programme. His primary role is overseeing eight multi-stakeholder roundtables, collectively called the Aquaculture Dialogues, which have created global standards that will help address the environmental and social impacts associated with aquaculture. Additionally, he manages global Aquaculture Improvement Projects (AIPs) which assist fish farmers to comply with those standards. He is the current Chairman of the Board of the independent Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC).
Knut Nesse, CEO Nutreco: “I’m very happy José Villalón will join Nutreco. José brings with him a wealth of experience both in sustainability and our industry, which will certainly contribute to bringing our sustainability to the next level.”
