The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) Board of Governors on Friday (3/4) announced the appointment of scale-up strategist expert Beverley Postma, as Chief Executive Officer-Designate of the organization effective May 1, 2020.
“On behalf of the board, we are delighted to announce the appointment of Ms Postma as the new Chief Executive Officer of RSPO. We are confident that with her more than 20 years of experience in the global food industry, Beverley will help RSPO reach new heights and create a greater impact on the sustainable palm oil value chain,” Co-Chairs of the RSPO Board of Governors, Anne Rosenbarger and Dato’ Carl Bek-Nielsen said in a RSPO release.
Currently a consultant for GreenOcean Group, a Singapore-based sustainable business consultancy, Postma will take over from interim CEO Bakhtiar Thalhah who assumed the post following the resignation of Daniel Webber effective in January. Thalhah will return to the role of Chief Operating Officer of the RSPO. Postma is also the Founder and Executive Director of Food Industry Asia (FIA), the leading industry association for food companies in Asia, and was Chief Executive Officer of HarvestPlus based in Washington, D.C., where she managed a global team of more than 170 staff across fifteen countries.
She said she was honored to be joining an organization that played such a crucial role in one of the most important commodities traded globally at present and added that she looked forward to “this new chapter” despite these uncertain times with the global community facing unique challenges amidst COVID-1.
“Though it is not without its challenges, the approach of the RSPO – in bringing diverse groups of stakeholders with individual interests together – is the best way to build effective partnerships and solve the world’s most difficult problems,” Postma said.
RSPO is a multi-stakeholder organization which has the world’s most recognized palm oil sustainability standard.