New Harbor Capital Portfolio Company FoodPharma Hires CEO
New Harbor Capital is excited to announce that portfolio company FoodPharma (“FoodPharma”, “the Company”) has hired Brent Eck as Chief Executive Officer. Glen Marinelli, Founder and current Chief Executive Officer of FoodPharma, will continue to serve as Chairman of the Board following this planned transition.
Glen has played a pivotal role in building a highly successful business at FoodPharma over the last 20-plus years. Under his leadership, FoodPharma has grown dramatically, and his dedication has positioned FoodPharma as a leader in the soft chew category within the VMS industry, as well as an attractive, high-growth platform in the functional food and dietary supplement contract manufacturing sector. When Glen selected New Harbor as his private equity partner in 2021, they aligned on a plan to help him transition out of the day-to-day management of the business over time once critical building blocks were in place. Glen has made dramatic improvements in the business consistent with this strategy since New Harbor’s investment, and the organization is now ready to transition the business to a professional CEO.
“We are very excited to have a leader of Brent’s caliber joining the FoodPharma team,” said Bo Mlnarik, Principal at New Harbor Capital. “His extensive track record of building and transforming healthcare businesses, coupled with his deep understanding of the nutritional supplements space, will help to accelerate FoodPharma’s growth and development as a leader in the functional food and dietary supplements industry. We also deeply appreciate Glen’s partnership and faith along this journey and his immense contributions to the Company. FoodPharma’s continued success is all thanks to Glen’s leadership, vision, and commitment.”
“Brent’s management style, relevant industry knowledge, and VMS experience made him a perfect fit for the role,” said Glen Marinelli, Chairman of FoodPharma. “We are pleased to have him champion the firm into its next phase as CEO and look forward to addressing the many new opportunities ahead under his leadership.”
“I’m thrilled to be taking the baton from Glen and working to accelerate growth on the platform he created,” said Brent Eck, CEO of FoodPharma. “Through deep partnerships, FoodPharma’s products and nutrition delivery platforms help power companies in the nutrition space to create supplements and functional foods that consumers not only need, but also genuinely enjoy taking.”
Brent Eck, Chief Executive Officer of FoodPharma
Brent Eck brings over 20 years of global business leadership experience in nutrition, wellness, and functional and medical foods, to his position as Chief Executive Officer of FoodPharma. He specializes in transforming and accelerating the growth of businesses and enabling leadership teams and the businesses they serve to reach their full potential.
Most recently, Brent served as the CEO and President of Metagenics, where he led its turnaround and expanded the global footprint of one of the world’s largest privately-owned vitamin mineral supplement companies, resulting in significant increases in revenue and profit.
Before that, he served as Executive Vice President at Fresenius Kabi, where he led US Sales & Marketing to over $1.6B in revenues and oversaw Business Development and Regional Operations.
About FoodPharma
FoodPharma is a science-centered developer and manufacturer of functional foods, including dietary supplement soft chews, nutrition bars, and other novel plant-based food delivery systems. The Company leverages a large portfolio of proprietary formulas and recipes as well as in-house research, development, and formulation capabilities to deliver innovative, functional food products to its customers. It was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in Sante Fe Springs, California. For more information, visit www.foodpharma.com.