Bunge Ltd., a leader in agriculture, food and ingredients, recently announced a new global operating model aligned with the company’s commercial activities: handling and processing, managing physical product flows and risk management and optimization.

“Shifting away from our regional, matrix-based structure will simplify the organization and speed up decision-making, increasing our strategic flexibility, customer focus and accountability,” Bunge chief executive officer Gregory Heckman said. “These changes support our strategic priorities: driving operational performance, optimizing the portfolio and strengthening financial discipline.”

As a result of the realignment, Bunge is making the following changes to its senior leadership team, with immediate effect:

Agribusiness will be organized under three of the company’s most experienced executives to better leverage their skills and capabilities. They will work closely together to manage these operations and capitalize on the opportunities offered by the company’s physical, financial and information flows.

Bunge said it remains committed to growing its Food & Ingredients business through new product development and continued capture of synergies from the Loders Croklaan acquisition. To help achieve this goal, Aaron Buettner, senior vice president of Bunge Loders Croklaan, will continue in this role and now will report directly to Heckman. Specialty oils are the highest-value products in Bunge’s portfolio, and the unit will benefit from this additional management focus and oversight.

Pierre Mauger, president of Europe and Asia, will transition to the role of chief transformation officer, with responsibility for portfolio optimization and strategy, building on his prior experience as Bunge’s chief development officer. Todd Bastean, president of North America, and Gordon Hardie, president of Food & Ingredients, will both retire from Bunge after a transition period.

“I want to thank Todd and Gordon for their many contributions and dedication to Bunge,” Heckman said. “We appreciate their support in ensuring a seamless transition for customers and employees.”

He continued, “We are fortunate to have talented leaders with proven track records. I look forward to working with them as we continue to position Bunge for the future.”