Zambeef Plc appoints Walter Roodt to succeed Francis Grogan as Chief Executive

ZAMBIA – Food products and agribusiness company, Zambeef Plc has announced the appointment Walter Roodt as the company’s chief executive director to succeed Francis Grogan.

According to the statement by Pangea Securities Limited, Roodt will take over outgoing joint-chief executive officer Francis Grogan’s position when he retires by the end of this year.

“Zambeef, the fully integrated food producer with operations in Zambia, Nigeria and Ghana, announces the appointment of Walter Roodt to its Board as an Executive Director with immediate effect.

Walter currently serves as the Group’s Deputy Managing Director, reporting to and understudying the CEO, Francis Grogan.

As part of the Group’s succession plan, which has been previously announced, Walter will be appointed CEO when Mr Grogan retires at the end of this year,” the statement read.

Walter has been serving at different position in the company since he joined Zambeef in July 2008 in the role of Nutritionist for the stock feed division, trading as Novatek.

In 2009, Walter was then appointed as the General Manager of the division, a position he held until he was appointed as the Deputy Managing Director of the Group.

Walter has worked in the company propelling growth in the stock feed division and positioning Novatek as not only the best performing division at Zambeef but also Zambia’s leading stock feed manufacturer.

Previously, Walter held the role of Technical Manager/Advisor at Feedmaster (Pty) Ltd for six years.

He has a Bachelors degree in Animal Science and a Masters of Science (MSc) in Animal Nutrition from the University of Pretoria.

Dr Jacob Mwanza, Zambeef Plc board chairperson, hailed the appointment saying that Walter has been a key figure in Zambeef’s success and remained committed to the group.

“Walter’s appointment as an Executive Director is in line with the Group’s well-considered succession plan and is validation of his hard work and commitment to the Group over the past 11 years.

The Board looks forward to working closely with Walter in his new role,” stated Dr Mwanza.

The appointment comes shortly after the company’s chief financial officer (CFO) Craig Harris resigned from the position.

Following the resignation, Zambeef said that it will commence a search process to appoint a new finance head and appointed Chief Executive Francis Grogan as the interim CFO.