20 December 2023
Dear Friends and Supporters of FareShare,
Our mission at FareShare has never been more relevant, with the cost of living crisis increasing demand for food and our environmental role which ensures that surplus food doesn't go to waste. We are proud to be recognised for our importance in both the food and charities sectors with our inclusion in the Coronation Food Project coordinated by The King Charles III Charitable Fund.
The tenure of a number of our existing trustees is coming to an end and I thank them for the contribution that they have made to the development of FareShare over many years. This presents us with the opportunity to bring new talent to our board with the skills, experience and industry networks to complement our team. These skills will enhance our ability to deliver our strategy, specifically with a focus on developing new sources across the supply chain to maximise the distribution of surplus food.
We are delighted to announce the appointment of the following industry leaders to the FareShare board of trustees:
Dominic Blakemore – CEO of Compass Group PLC
Dominic has been CEO of Compass Group PLC, the world’s leading food service company since January 2018, having been on the Board since 2012. Prior executive appointments include CFO of Iglo Foods Group and Corporate Finance Director and Regional Finance Director of Cadbury plc. Dominic’s career began at PricewaterhouseCoopers and he is currently also a Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Audit Committee of the London Stock Exchange Group plc. Dominic is Vice-Chair of the Council of University College London (“UCL”), where he was an alumnus and achieved a BA Hons in French Language and Literature.
Aron Gelbard – co-founder of Bloom & Wild
Aron Gelbard co-founded Bloom & Wild in 2013, and over the last 10 years has built the business into Europe’s leading direct-to-consumer flower and gifting platform, delivering millions of bouquets, plants and other gifts every year. It operates in eight European markets with a family of three consumer brands. Bloom & Wild differentiates itself through a direct-from-grower supply chain with meaningfully lower waste than industry norms and through the use of proprietary technology to deliver a better customer experience and a more scalable and sustainable operation.
The Group has been certified carbon neutral since 2020, is a signatory of the UK's Tech Zero pledge, and has pioneered numerous sustainability innovations across supply chain and product development. Previously Aron worked at Bain & Company in London and Silicon Valley. He has an MA from Oxford University and an MBA from Harvard Business School. Aron is an active angel investor including in Carbon 13 and Eka Ventures in the sustainability space and is a pledger to Founders Pledge.
Karen Betts OBE – CEO of the Food & Drink Federation
Karen joined the Food & Drink Federation as their Chief Executive in December 2021. Prior to this, she was the Chief Executive of the Scotch Whisky Association for four years, representing the Scotch Whisky sector in the UK and export markets worldwide. Previously Karen was a diplomat in the Foreign & Commonwealth Office for 16 years, where she held a variety of posts in London and overseas, including as British Ambassador to Morocco and non-resident Ambassador to Mauritania and Counsellor to the British Embassy in Washington. She was also posted to the UK's Permanent Representation to the EU in Brussels and the British Embassy in Baghdad. In London, she served in the Cabinet Office and the Joint Intelligence Committee, as well as in several roles in the Foreign Office. Before joining government, Karen was a lawyer at Clifford Chance, working in London and Hong Kong. Karen is an Adviser to the UK Government’s Board of Trade and received an OBE in the 2022 Queen’s Birthday Honours for her services to international trade.
Martin Ryan
Martin brings 30 years of experience across investment banking and market infrastructure leadership roles that have focused heavily on technology and M&A transformation. He was previously Group Chief Operating Officer at TPICAP plc where he led the integration of the separately listed Tullett Prebon and ICAP group of companies. Prior to this, Martin was CEO of London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) Business Services and CIO and board member of its subsidiary, LCH Clearnet. He has also held roles at Morgan Stanley and JP Morgan, where he began his career in its markets sales & trading business working in the U.K. USA and Japan. Martin graduated from the University of Manchester, having read economics. He was a board governor and audit committee chair at Tower Hamlets College and is currently a serving board trustee at the Willow Foundation.
Paul Kenward – CEO of ABF Sugar
In October 2022, Paul became Chief Executive Officer of ABF Sugar, having been Managing Director of British Sugar since 2016. Paul is responsible for the extensive sugar interests of Associated British Foods (ABF) which include many iconic brands and include renewable power, ethanol, animal feed and more. Previously, Paul was Managing Director of Westmill Foods and was AB Sugar’s first Strategy Director. Paul graduated in Modern History from Oxford and joined international strategy consultancy OC&C. He then became Director of Commercial Operations, Europe for EMI Records.
Tim O’Malley – Group Managing Director of Nationwide Produce PLC
Tim is Group Managing Director of Nationwide Produce PLC – a family business involved in all aspects of fresh produce. Nationwide grows, grades, packs, trades, imports and exports fresh produce. It is one of the largest produce companies in the UK with offices and depots throughout the UK mainland, Belfast, Dublin, the Netherlands and Spain. Tim has worked in fresh produce all his life. Apart from the family business, he has worked at VHB, Briess, Hassy and G’s. Tim is a Liveryman of The Worshipful Company of Fruiterers, a Freeman of the City of London and a die-hard Evertonian.
To complement the activities of the board we will also be setting up a number of Advisory Groups to cover various areas which include food industry and logistics, marketing and government engagement, transformation, and fundraising.
