Swedish food group Midsona has appointed Henrik Hjalmarsson as its new CEO and president, succeeding Peter Åsberg.
Hjalmarsson will take on the new responsibility “no later than” 1 October, the company said in a statement.
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He joins from OptiGroup, where he has been CEO and president since January 2024.
In the new role, he said he plans to “work together with the board and management towards the ambition that Midsona will become one of Europe’s leading companies in healthy and sustainable food”.
He added: “With strong brands, well positioned to capitalise on an increasing health trend, I see great opportunities to continue to develop Midsona with a clear focus on profitable growth, to realise the company’s potential.”
In January, Midsona announced the departure of Åsberg, who joined as the CEO in 2007, noting that he would “remain in his role during a transition period” until the successor takes office.
Midsona board chairman Patrik Andersson said: “Henrik Hjalmarsson has a long and solid experience within the food industry and in recent years has accumulated important expertise as CEO in various industrial and service companies.
“Henrik Hjalmarsson has the competence, leadership and energy to accelerate the implementation of Midsona’s strategy and achieve the financial targets.”
Hjalmarsson’s previous food industry positions include leadership roles within the Findus Group.
The leadership change follows Midsona’s 2024 financial results announcement, with net sales dipping 1.7% to Skr3.72bn ($337.3m).
However, the company’s gross profit for the year totalled Skr1.07bn, up from Skr959m in 2023, reflecting a margin of 28.7%.
Operating profit increased to Skr128m from Skr29m in 2023, with a margin of 3.4%.
The company swung to a net profit of Skr47m in 2024, from a Skr53m loss in the previous year.
Diluted earnings per share (EPS) amounted to Skr0.33 in 2024, compared to a loss of Skr0.36 per share a year earlier.
The company reported margin and operating profit improvements in all three of its divisions – Nordics, north Europe, and south Europe.
Åsberg said: “While there is a certain uncertainty in the near-term outlook, we are taking a positive view of the full year 2025.”
