FRANCE – Lessaffre, a leading French fermentation specialist, has appointed Brice-Audren Riché as chief executive officer to spearhead the Group’s overall development in the fields of baking, nutrition and health. 

Riché,  who until his appointment was the general manager of Biospringer, is succeeding Antoine Baule, who has reached the end of his mandate.  

A graduate of the Ecole Polytechnique, Riché began his career with Ernst & Young in 1997, later joining Lafarge and holding various finance positions in Europe, Asia, and Latin America.  

He joined Lesaffre as global GM of Biospringer, Lesaffre’s business unit specializing in yeast extracts, in 2017, where he was also in charge of Procelys, Ennolys, and LIS.  

 Riché’s extensive management, strategic and operational experience acquired during a successful career stand him in good stead to lead the company’s 2022-2024 growth strategy.  

“I am honoured by the confidence placed in me by Lesaffre’s Board of Directors to continue to drive the company’s growth,” said Riché.  

“Lesaffre has been driven for over 160 years by its ambition to create innovative and environmentally-friendly solutions based on micro-organisms and the power of fermentation. Those solutions meet the needs of nutrition, health, and naturalness, which are more than ever at the heart of society’s challenges.”  

During his nine-year tenure, Antoine Baule was instrumental in establishing the €2,2bn company as a global reference in yeast and breadmaking.  

In fact, the company claims that one bread out of every three in the world is made with its yeast.  

“Antoine Baule has enabled us to accelerate the transformation of Lesaffre as a key player in the fermentation industry and we thank him for the commitment he has shown for over nine years,” said Thibaut de Ladoucette, chairman of the Board of Directors. 

“After examining Lesaffre’s major challenges for the coming years, the Board of Directors felt that Brice-Audren Riché has, in addition to his exemplary professional background, all the skills and personal qualities to pursue our development strategy.” 

Ladoucette further expressed his confidence that Riche who has also been serving as Lesaffre’s deputy MD since the start of the year will lead the Group towards new successes with the full support of Lesaffre’s 10,700 employees. 

Baule said he leaves with the satisfaction of having contributed to the Group’s growth and profitability, “thanks, in particular, to the commitment and dynamism of all our teams throughout the world. 

 “Over the past few months, Brice-Audren Riché has led the steering of the 2022-2024 strategy with rigor and determination,” Baule added.  

“This period has enabled us to exchange ideas in complete confidence and to share the information necessary to pursue Lesaffre’s ambitions. I am convinced that Brice-Audren has all the necessary qualities to guarantee the implementation of our commitments.” 

Earlier Lesaffre opened a new innovation technology centre in Dubai, UAE as part of its relentless push to expand its international expertise network.  

The 400m Dubai Baking Centre has been designed to specifically tackle the emerging and unique market challenges of the region.  

It also gives the company greater proximity to customers of all profiles, from the artisan baker to the industrial baker, while the diversity of its Lesaffre Gulf team allows it to easily interact with international clients. 

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