NatureWorks, a Cargill Inc. joint venture that makes bioplastics, has appointed Erik Ripple as the company’s new president and CEO.
NatureWorks, which is headquartered in Plymouth and owned equally by Wayzata-based Cargill and Thailand's PTT Global Chemical Public Co., has been led by interim CEO Jill Zullo since March 2023 after Rich Altice retired after five years as CEO. Ripple's appointment as CEO is effective immediately.
Ripple comes to NatureWorks from Nexeon, a British manufacturer of silicon carbide for electric vehicle batteries, where he was chief strategy officer. Prior to joining Nexeon in April, he worked at Ingevity, based in North Charleston, South Carolina, for 13 years in various leadership roles, including president of Asia Pacific and chief growth and innovation officer.
Additionally, Ripple spent 18 years with Kingsport, Tennessee-based Eastman Chemical Co., where he served in leadership roles in innovation, business management, and corporate development, as well as holding regional responsibilities in Europe.
Ripple earned a bachelor's degree in chemistry from the University of Tennessee and an MBA from Washington University.
Narongsak Jivakanun, NatureWorks’s board chair, said in a news release that Ripple’s strategic and international experience will help the company drive global adoption of biomaterials. “Erik has a strong track record of global business leadership, building innovative teams, and driving growth in new markets,” he said.
Ripple is joining NatureWorks as it continues construction of a new factory in Thailand to make a biopolymer-based plastic replacement called Ingeo.
NatureWorks has been seeing increased interest in sustainable plastics from large brands such as Starbucks and Pepsi. Leah Ford, the company's senior global marketing and communications manager, told the Business Journal last year that consumers, nonprofits and legislators for the past several years have began taking an interest in the role of plastics in tackling climate change.
