Board of Directors

Mr. Lim Ah Doo brought with him over 40 years of broad and in-depth experience of the banking and commerce world. He was a senior banker with a distinguished career who led several landmark transactions during his banking days, top executive of a large major global leading resource-based group, and a director of several large-sized listed and private companies in and outside of Singapore. Mr. Lim was formerly the President and subsequently the non-executive Vice Chairman of RGE Pte Ltd (formerly known as RGM International Pte Ltd). His past working experience includes an 18-year banking career in Morgan Grenfell from 1977 to 1995, during which he held several key positions including that of Chairman of Morgan Grenfell (Asia) Limited.

Sunny Verghese is Group CEO of Olam, and post the re-organisation of the Group announced on 20 January 2020, he holds charge as CEO of Olam Global Agri and the Remaining Businesses of Olam Group.

Sunny Verghese was with the Kewalram Chanrai Group (KC Group) for over two decades and in 1989 was mandated to start the Company with a view to building an agricultural-products business for the KC Group. Before joining the KC Group, he worked for Unilever in India.

From 2018 to 2021 Sunny Verghese was Chair of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), the global, CEO-led organisation dedicated to accelerating the transition to a sustainable world.

Mr Verghese previously chaired CitySpring Infrastructure Management Pte Ltd, a listed Business Trust in Singapore and was also a Commissioner of the Business and Sustainable Development Commission (BSDC). He has won several awards including ‘Outstanding Chief Executive’ at the Singapore Business Awards in 2007, ‘Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year’ for Singapore in 2008 and ‘Best CEO of the Year 2011’ at the Singapore Corporate Awards. He was also awarded the Public Service Medal by the Government of the Republic of Singapore in 2010.

Mr. Nihal Kaviratne CBE’s career with the Unilever Group spanned 40 years during which he held various senior level management positions in sales, marketing, brand and strategic planning and development, and as Chairman/CEO across Asia, Europe and Latin America. He retired from Unilever in 2005. Mr. Kaviratne was cited in HM Queen Elizabeth II’s 2004 New Year Honours List in the UK and has been made the Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to UK business interests and to sustainable development in Indonesia. He was one of “25 leaders at the forefront of change” chosen by Business Week in 2002 for the Stars of Asia Award. In its year end 2010 issue, Forbes India listed him as one of the “5 top names to have on your Board”. He was awarded for driving “Business Excellence” at the World Business Conclave 2016 in Hong Kong. Mr. Kaviratne brings with him extensive organisational, business, management, strategic planning and customer-based experience and knowledge. 

Mr. Yap Chee Keong’s career included being the Executive Director of The Straits Trading Company Limited and the Chief Financial Officer of Singapore Power Ltd. Mr. Yap has also worked in various senior management roles in multinational and listed companies. He was a board member of the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority and a member of the Public Accountants Oversight Committee, the MAS/SGX/ACRA Work Group to review the Guidebook for Audit Committees in Singapore and the MAS/SGX/ACRA/SID Review Panel to develop a Guide for Board Risk Committees in Singapore.

Ms. Marie Elaine Teo brings investment experience across a broad range of industries and markets to bear in assessing opportunities and challenges in the future. She has over 20 years of investment experience, primarily with the Capital Group companies where she focused on Asian banks and global emerging markets, both as an analyst and an investment manager. Ms. Teo was formerly the Chairman of Capital International Research, Inc. and Managing Director of Capital International Inc., Asia.

Having been appointed CEO of Siber Hegner Ltd in 2000, Dr. Joerg Wolle was instrumental in a quick turnaround of the 130 year old Asia trading company which had fallen on hard times. Following this, he merged the company with two other Swiss-based Asia-focused distribution companies and created the leading business services and distribution group in the ASEAN region with more than 33,000 specialised staff. He grew sales three- and profits six-fold during his tenure as CEO and took the company public on the Zurich Stock Exchange. Dr. Wolle is presently Chairman of Kuehne + Nagel International Ltd and KlingeInberg AG. He was President and CEO of DKSH Holding Ltd from 2002 to 2017 and became its Chairman from 2017 to 2019. Dr. Wolle was a member of the Supervisory Board of Louis Dreyfus Company B.V. (2014 to 2018) and a member of the Board of Directors of UBS Ltd (2006 to 2009) and DietheIm Keller Holding Ltd. (2004 to 2019).

Dr. Ajai Puri brings more than three decades of global experience in various food and agri industries. His expertise spans several domains – innovation, science and technology, product integrity, food safety and consumer marketing. From 1981 to 2003, Dr. Puri worked for The Coca-Cola Company where he held a variety of roles in research and development, innovation, consumer marketing and general management. When he left Coca- Cola in 2003, he was Senior Vice President – Science and Technology for Coca-Cola’s non-carbonated juice business in North America. From 2003 to 2007, Dr. Puri was Executive Board Member and President – Research, Development and Product Integrity at Amsterdam-based Royal Numico N.V. Previous non-executive roles include Tate & Lyle PLC (2012-2021), Nutreco N.V. (2009- 2015) and Barry Callebaut AG (2011-2014). Dr. Puri is presently a Non-Executive Director with IMI PLC, Firmenich S.A., Britannia Industries Ltd, the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (G.A.I.N.) and Califa Farms LP.

Mr. Nagi Hamiyeh brings 28 years of experience in strategy, corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions (M&A), growth equity, private equity and public investing in multiple industries across the globe. Furthermore, he was intimately involved in companies’ consolidation and restructuring, as well as working closely with portfolio companies on value uplift opportunities. Lastly, he led the development of the various greenfield platforms by way of M&A and organic growth. Mr. Hamiyeh is the Joint Head of Temasek’s Investment Group, and is concurrently the Head of Portfolio Development. Mr. Hamiyeh joined Temasek in 2005. Over the course of his career with Temasek, he had led the firm’s Natural Resources, Industrials, Consumer and Real Estate Investment teams and was Joint Head of Enterprise Development Group and Head of Africa and Middle East, Australia and New Zealand. Prior to Temasek, Mr. Hamiyeh was a banker with Credit Suisse First Boston’s Energy Group. He began his career at Bain & Company.

Mr. Shuji Kobayashi is currently the Senior Vice President of Mitsubishi Corporation (“MC”), a conglomerate listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange with JPY 8 trillion in market capitalisation, over 1,200 subsidiaries world-wide and 82,000+ employees on a consolidated basis. Mr. Kobayashi has over 20 years of successful experience in the Food & Agriculture industry and played managerial roles at multiple Food & Agriculture companies worldwide, such as in USA, Brazil, Australia, Indonesia, China, Singapore and Japan. In his current role, Mr. Kobayashi is the Division Chief Operating Officer (COO), Food Resources Division which mainly oversees MC’s global operations of origination & merchandising of food ingredients such as corn, wheat, soybean, cocoa and coffee, and manufacturing of products such as animal feed, wheat flour and sugar.

Prior to his current role, Mr. Kobayashi was the Head of Digital Strategy and Business Development of the Food Industry Group where he led digital transformation initiatives of the Food Industry Group. During his executive management career in MC, Mr. Kobayashi has also served for the Corporate Strategy & Planning Department, where he was responsible of the overarching strategy planning of MC and created multiple synergistic opportunities beyond MC’s traditional business boundaries.

Mr. Yuji Tsushima is currently the Division Chief Operating Officer (COO), Food Resources Division of Mitsubishi Corporation. He joined Mitsubishi Corporation in 1993. He has played various managerial roles in Mitsubishi Corporation in Tokyo as well as in its overseas offices, including USA and Indonesia.