Aracia Industrial SA de CV is a privately-owned company based in Guadalajara, Mexico, with interests in a variety of fields, including industrial enzymes, outfitting and rental service of specialized textiles to the health sector, and transportation and logistics. He has worked in finance, strategic planning, and plant management for oils and surfactants. After graduating with a degree in electrical engineering from the University of Notre Dame, Mr. Aranguren worked for Hewlett-Packard. He earned his MBA from Stanford University.
Jim Carruthers, Jr. is the founder and Managing Partner of Sophos Capital Management, LP, a Menlo Park, CA based specialty multi-sector hedge fund. Prior to Sophos, Jim was a Partner and Portfolio Manager for New York-based investment manager Third Point LLC. Previously Mr. Carruthers was a Founding Partner of Eastbourne Capital, a hedge fund operating out of California and as a principal at Robertson-Stephens Investment Management (RSIM). In both positions, Mr. Carruthers focused on both long and short equity positions. Earlier in his career, Mr. Carruthers held management positions with Washington DC area Systems Integration companies American Management Systems and Martin Marietta Data Systems. He graduated from University of Maryland with a BS in Business Administration and holds an MBA from George Washington University, where he sits on the Business School Board of Advisors.
Mr. Kirk has 37 years of experience at DuPont, where as Group Vice President he led its $4.5 billion Agriculture Business and served as a member of the CEO's Strategy/Operating Committee. Mr. Kirk created a vision to expand agricultural participation from crop protection to include the acquisition of Pioneer Hi-Bred, biotechnology research & development, and food ingredients (Protein Technology Acquisition). In addition to being named Agrimarketer of the Year in 1998 by Agrimarketer Magazine, Mr. Kirk was recognized for his biotechnology leadership by University of Illinois, and he received an award for his service to agriculture by the Farm Managers Association.
Jim Borel has over 40 years of experience in the global agriculture and food industry. He served as executive vice president and member of the DuPont Office of the Chief Executive until early 2016 where he had responsibility for the company’s global agriculture and food ingredient businesses.
Jim currently serves as the chair of the board of Directors of Neogen Corporation (NASDAQ: NEOG), and as a board member Farmers Edge (TSX: FDGE), AeroFarms, Inc., and Eat Just, Inc. He also advises selected ag & food ventures and serves on the Board of Advisors for Sajjan India Ltd, is a member of the board of trustees of the University of Delaware and the Alpha Gamma Rho Educational Foundation; and the Board of Governors of Iowa State University.
Jim graduated from Iowa State University with a degree in agricultural business.
Charles O. (Chad) Holliday, Jr. is the Former Chairman of Royal Dutch Shell plc. He previously served as Chairman of the board of Bank of America and as Chairman and CEO of DuPont, the company he retired from after 36 years of service.
Chad is Lead Independent Non-Executive director at Venterra Group plc, board member at Advanced BioNutrition Corp and lead investor at Resource Resolutions, plc. He is a licensed Professional Engineer and a member of the U.S. National Academy of Engineering and the UK Royal Society of Engineering.
He is also a founding member of the International Business Council and a Senior Fellow of The Mission Possible Partnership (MPP), an alliance of climate leaders focused on supercharging efforts to decarbonize some of the world’s highest emitting industries in the next 10 years. MPP is a joint venture between multiple NGOs including the World Economic Forum to expand and accelerate the work of seven nascent industry working groups in aluminum, aviation, cement and concrete, chemicals, shipping, steel, and trucking.
He previously served as Chairman of the following organizations: U.S. Council on Competitiveness, United Nations Sustainable Energy for All, World Business Council for Sustainable Development, Catalyst, U.S. Business Council, and the U.S. National Academy of Engineering.
Holliday graduated from the University of Tennessee with a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering. He received honorary doctorates from Polytechnic University, Brooklyn, New York; Washington College, Chestertown, Maryland; and the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee.