Former Mars Canada CEO joins Eat Beyond board of directors

July 10, 2020, Vancouver, B.C. – Eat Beyond Global Holdings, a fund focused on investing in companies that are developing and commercializing innovative and plant-based food products, has announced that Don Robinson, former CEO and President of Mars Canada, has joined its board of directors.

Robinson has spent over three decades in the consumer packaged goods (CPG) industry, including roles with Nabisco/Kraft and Mars Incorporated. His work has spanned four continents and three decades.

As CEO and president of Mars Canada, he transformed the business from an unprofitable operation losing $20 million annually to a business with $25 million in profit with sales of over $500 million. Most recently, he served as chairman, CEO and president of CARA Operations Ltd. (2006-2013), where he was responsible for successfully leading a $1.8-billion business with an EBITDA of $70 million for a period of seven years.

“Having spent so many years in the CPG and food industries, and having gone vegan myself about a year ago, I am excited by the opportunity that Eat Beyond brings. Seeking out the early ventures that need funding in this emerging area of plant-based and alternative foods is fascinating to me,” said Robinson. “The investment committee is impressive, and I believe that I can provide additional insight with my experience.

“At the heart of consumer packaged goods is being consumer-driven, and at the heart of being consumer-driven is looking at research and insights, knowing how to interpret them, and determining what will work and what won’t.”

Eat Beyond is the first fund of its kind in Canada that is solely focused on investing in global companies that are developing and commercializing innovative food products including alternatives to meat, seafood, eggs, and dairy.

“Inviting Mr. Robinson to join Eat Beyond as a director made perfect sense to our team. We are constantly evaluating a broad cross-section of companies throughout the growing alternative food sector, including consumer packaged goods,” said Patrick Morris, CEO of Eat Beyond.