Weiss, a seasoned independent director of a number of public company boards, brings deep experience in digital transformation, corporate governance, social responsibility and diversity and inclusion, as Kalera prepares for continued rapid domestic and international expansion.
ORLANDO, Fla., July 27, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Kalera (Euronext Growth Oslo ticker KAL: Bloomberg: KSLLF), one of the fastest-growing and largest vertical farming companies in the world and a leader in plant science for producing high-quality produce in controlled environments, today announced Andrea M. Weiss as adviser to its Board of Directors. In this role, Ms. Weiss will work closely with Kalera’s Board of Directors as they prepare the firm for a future U.S. listing of its stock. She will also be presented as a candidate for the Board of Directors.
Ms. Weiss is the CEO and founder of The O Alliance, a consulting firm she founded focused on digital transformation of consumer product and retail businesses. She is considered a pioneer in omni-channel and seamless commerce. Her global client base includes leading brands in Europe, Latin America, Canada and the United States, as well as global technology and private equity firms. Prior to founding The O Alliance in 2014, Weiss had a 30 year career with consumer and fashion industry leaders; including as Chairman of the Board of Madrid-based, Grupo Cortefiel, S.A. (now Tendam), Chief Stores Officer of L Brands, President of GUESS Inc., and held executive positions with The Walt Disney Company and ANN Inc.
Presently, Ms. Weiss is member of the Board of Directors of Cracker Barrel Old Country Store (Nasdaq:CBRL), where she chairs the public responsibility committee and serves on the audit committee, RPT Realty (NYSE: RPT), where she is on the compensation committee and O’Reilly Auto Parts (Nasdaq: ORLY) and Bed Bath & Beyond (Nasdaq: BBBY) where she is on the audit committees. Previously, she also chaired the transformation committee at Bed Bath and Beyond. Her previous public boards, include Nutrisystem, Pep Boys, GSI Commerce, Chicos FAS and eDiets, and her board service roles includes chair of nominating/governance and compensation committees.
In 2019, Ms. Weiss was recognized by Woman, Inc. on their Most Influential Corporate Directors list and she was named in 2016 to the NACD prestigious D100 list, recognizing the Top 100 Public Directors in the USA. She is a NACD Board Leadership Fellow.
“We are thrilled to have Andrea Weiss join the Kalera team,” said Bjorge Gretland, Chairman. “Andrea is among the elite public company Directors in the United States and she has extensive experience with high-growth companies. We are confident she will add tremendous value.”
Andrea Weiss said, “Kalera makes what the world needs today: ‘cleaner than organic’ leafy greens produced in an exceptionally sustainable way. I am excited about having the opportunity to partner with Kalera’s outstanding management team and Board to achieve the company’s full potential.”
In addition to her aforementioned business experience, Weiss also has served on numerous civic and non-profit boards, including as Chairperson of Delivering Good, a US-based 501(c)(3) organization. Weiss received her BFA in Fine Arts from Virginia Commonwealth University and her MAS from Johns Hopkins University. She also did post graduate work at Harvard Business School.
Kalera currently operates two growing facilities in Orlando and a newly opened facility in Atlanta, and is building facilities in Houston, Denver, Columbus, Seattle, Minnesota and Hawaii. Kalera is the only controlled environment agricultural company with coast-to-coast facilities being constructed, offering grocers, restaurants, theme parks, airports and other businesses nationwide reliable access to locally grown clean, safe, nutritious, price-stable, long-lasting greens. Kalera uses a closed-loop irrigation system which enables its plants to grow while consuming 95% less water compared to field farming.
Ms. Weiss will join as an adviser to the Board effective immediately. At a future general meeting of the shareholders she will be presented as a candidate for the Board of Directors, in preparation for a potential U.S. listing.
Cautionary Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact contained in this release constitute forward-looking statements, including statements regarding our planned U.S. listing (and related transactions) and our business plans.
These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements.
We have based these forward-looking statements largely on our current expectations and projections about future events and financial trends affecting our business. Forward-looking statements should not be read as a guarantee of future performance or results and will not necessarily be accurate indications of the times at, or by, which such performance or results will be achieved. Forward-looking statements are based on information available at the time those statements are made and/or management’s good faith belief as of that time with respect to future events, and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual performance or results to differ materially from those expressed in or suggested by the forward-looking statements.
About Kalera
Kalera is a technology driven vertical farming company with unique growing methods combining optimized nutrients and light recipes, precise environmental controls, and clean room standards to produce safe, highly nutritious, pesticide-free, non-GMO vegetables and consistently high quality and longer shelf life year-round. The company’s high-yield, automated, data-driven hydroponic production facilities have been designed for rapid rollout with industry-leading payback times to grow vegetables faster, cleaner, at a lower cost, and with less environmental impact.
Kalera Contact:
Bjørge Gretland, Chairman
Email: bgretland@kalera.com
Daniel Malechuk, CEO
Phone: +1 407 574 2382
Email: dmalechuk@kalera.com
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/abc39a79-9edb-4bbc-a6c0-6a4eb94c090d
