Ron co-founded Packaging Verification systems, Inc. and is appointed President & Chief Executive Officer. As a seasoned leader with over three decades of experience spanning the UK and the United States, Ron brings a wealth of expertise in engineering, project management, operational excellence, and senior leadership within the food industry. With a foundation in labelling systems and extensive tenure with the world's largest private label chilled foods manufacturer, Ron possess a deep understanding of the challenges facing the food industry. As President & CEO of Packaging Verification Systems.

COMPANY OVERVIEWBakkavor Group is a leading manufacturer in the fresh prepared foods market, specializing in developing private label products for top global grocery retailers and well-known international foodservice operators. We have over 50 manufacturing facilities, employ over 19,000 people and make over 6,000 different products. KEY STRENGTHS Ability to resolve complex issues, build high-performing cross-functional teams, and gain buy in from stakeholders has delivered sustainable results in both public and privately held companies. I accelerate efficiency growth by leveraging my broad background in operations, engineering, supply chain, and general management. Known for an insightful and strategic approach to leadership; formulating actionable plans that turned around underperforming businesses and product lines, improving overall competitive position. Profit and loss responsibility with financial accountability for the business; able to analyze income statements and balance sheets in order to effectively manage and make decisions for the continued profitability of the business. A continuous builder of successful employee engagement to create an outstanding Health & Safety and work place culture to create an environment of outstanding performance. A solid track record of delivering highly complex projects, including factory extensions, brown-field, and new-site builds. Customer focused, able to communicate with all levels and disciplines within a customer’s business. The vast majority of my career has been spent in a rapidly growing business environment requiring an ability to work through others to deliver and execute a clear and coherent plan at pace.SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTSSignificant profitability improvements with sustainable outstanding performance within Bakkavor’s largest U.S. manufacturing business.

Bakkavor Group SpecialtiesFresh prepared foods, Chilled ready meals, Chilled desserts, Chilled pizzas, Prepared salads, Chilled dips, Chilled speciality bread, Chilled soups, Chilled sauces, Prepared fruit & vegetables, Chilled dressingsSIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTSSuccessful establishment of Bakkavor Foods Canada Inc. with the creation of a new manufacturing facility with time launch of 70 new & exclusive fresh chilled HMR products to Canada’s leading retail supermarket. Development and implementation of a project to revolutionize the manufacturing process used to create hummus products. This investment delivered a significant commercial advantage to the Bakkavor business located in Carson, California.Expansion of the Bakkavor manufacturing facility located in Jessup, Pennsylvania, with on time delivery of a new range of hummus, dips and sauces to multiple retail customersSuccessful establishment of a commissary kitchen located in Hillsborough, New Jersey to supply a range of fresh prepared foods to Wegmans supermarkets.Successful establishment of a new manufacturing facility for Bakkavor USA to supply a range of fresh pasta products Responsible for the entire project from concept to delivery within a four month timescale.

Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market, Inc. is a subsidiary of British retailer, Tesco PLC. Tesco, a global retailer with operations in 13 countries, is the 3rd largest retailer in the world. Our popular fresh&easy branded products have no artificial colors or flavors, no added trans fats, no high-fructose corn syrup, and only use preservatives when absolutely necessary. On average, our stores use 30% less energy than a typical supermarket, which helps customers save money – and also helps the environment. Specialties Grocery Retail, Food Manufacturing, Food & BeveragesSIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTSEstablishment of a new fresh chilled bakery & desserts manufacturing business for Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Markets, with ‘on budget’, and 'on time' completion.Redevelopment of a recently acquired Prepared Salads business for Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Markets. A significant investment to create additional manufacturing capacity for the launch of a new range of fresh prepared salads, salsa, dips and dressings.

Bakkavor Group is a leading manufacturer in the fresh prepared foods market, specialising in developing private label products for top global grocery retailers and well-known international foodservice operators. We have over 50 manufacturing facilities, employ over 19,000 people and make over 6,000 different products. Specialties Fresh prepared foods, Chilled ready meals, Chilled desserts, Chilled pizzas, Prepared salads, Chilled dips, Chilled speciality bread, Chilled soups, Chilled sauces, Prepared fruit & vegetables, Chilled dressingsSIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTSAcquisition of a market leading chilled breads manufacturer to gain the Bakkavor Group 80% market share of the UK fresh chilled breads market.Successful completion of multiple projects throughout the Bakkavor bakery business unitsPresentation, negotiation and settlement of a $90million dollar insurance claim following a fire which destroyed two Bakkavor factories.Successful establishment of a new pasta manufacturing business from concept to completionSuccessful establishment of a new bakery, manufacturing facility within the Bakkavor UK bakery division. Operational business improvements delivering a net business turnaround from a loss of $7 million dollars EBITDA, to break even, within two years.Successful implementation of a highly automated manufacturing control system with real time data acquisition and system integration between ERP, MRP & SCADA.Implementation of Total Productive Maintenance within a lean manufacturing business achieving net machine efficiency improvements from 36% to 78% NME

Preparation and marketing of chilled convnience foods; Growing and marketing of prepared produce including Ready meals, Soups, Pizza, Pasta, Sauces, Bread, Leafy Salads, Prepared Fruit & Vegetables, Dressed Salads, Snack Salads, Whole Salads, Imported Fruit, Dips & Dressings, Flowers, Stir-fry and Potatoes