Cargill announces top level appointments to pioneer META food solutions and enterprise 

As Cargill transforms its ingredients enterprise to provide customers with holistic, innovative food solutions, the team in META has announced the appointment of six executives tasked with driving through that change.

Cargill is committed to increasing the percent of women in leadership positions to 50% globally by 2030, and celebrates the following appointments that bring it closer to achieving that goal:

• Banu Öksün has been appointed Portfolio Director Meat & Dairy Alternative Food Solutions

• Sonat Akat, has been appointed as Product Line Director Edible Oils META

• Tuba Çetin has been appointed as Head of the Legal Department for Food Solutions META

• Ayşe Arslan has been appointed as Finance Director Food Solutions META 

• Cem Beysel, will now assume the role of Director of Starches, Sweeteners & Texturizers Product Line and Sustainability META

• Demokan Konyalıgil has been appointed Government Relations and External Communications lead for Food Solutions META.

Murat Tarakçıoğlu, Managing Director Food Solutions META explains, “Our vision for the future is go further than being an ingredient supplier – we want to help our customers innovate to new heights by anticipating new trends, investing in our research and enabling co-creation across our businesses. These appointments will help drive through this new way of operating all while placing sustainability at the core of our business model, all in or effort to revitalize food for happier, healthier lives.”

Banu Öksün has been appointed Portfolio Director Meat & Dairy Alternative Food Solutions. Öksün, who previously held dual positions as Chief HR Officer for Cargill Foods META (Middle East, Türkiye & Africa) region has made significant contributions to Cargill Foods META's strategic talent management and growth strategies over the past six years. She holds a bachelor's degree in Guidance and Psychological Counseling from Boğaziçi University and a master's degree in Media Studies from New School University (Parsons College). Öksün has held various positions at Bank of America, Merrill Lynch (New York), Microsoft, Samsung, and Ünlü & Co.

Sonat Akat has been appointed as Product Line Director Edible Oils META, having previously held the position of Finance Director Foods META. Akat, who graduated from Boğaziçi University's Business Administration Department and holds an MBA degree in finance from Cornell University's S.C. Johnson Graduate School of Management, has over 25 years of experience in various companies such as Shaya, BAT, and Turkcell, where she has successfully worked on strategic and structural change projects. 

Ayşe Arslan has been appointed to the vacant position of Finance Director Food Solutions META, replacing Akat. Arslan, who has extensive experience in finance, has held various positions in global companies such as Siemens, Nokia, and Vodafone. Since 2019, Ayşe Arslan has contributed to Cargill's regional growth and has been involved in strategic projects, playing an active role in the development of the corporate culture in the META region, particularly in the field of "Strong Leadership." Arslan, a graduate of Bilkent University's Business Administration program, is currently working on her master's thesis in Social Projects and NGO Management at Bilgi University.

Tuba Çetin, a senior attorney with 25 years of experience and a graduate of Marmara University's Faculty of Law, has been appointed as Head of the Legal Department for Food Solutions META. Çetin also continues her role as the Türkiye leader of Cargill's global women's initiative, Cargill Women's Network (CWN). CWN is a network that works towards gender equality and provides a platform for women to discuss common issues. It aims to encourage and empower women, increase their visibility, and enhance their career progression.

Cem Beysel, will now assume the role of Director of Starches, Sweeteners & Texturizers Product Line and Sustainability as Cargill looks to feed the world in a safe, responsible and sustainable way. Beysel, who graduated from Marmara University with a degree in English Business Administration, began his career in the consulting and auditing department at Arthur Andersen. Since 1999, Beysel has held various positions in finance, business development, company acquisitions, product management, and marketing at Cargill in Türkiye and META. He has developed and managed various projects for Cargill's animal feed operations in the Middle East and Türkiye, contributing to their growth. 

Demokan Konyalıgil has been apoointed Government Relations and External Communications lead for Food Solutions META. In the early years of his career, Konyalıgil worked in Audit at international companies such as Frito Lay and Coca-Cola İçecek (CCI). He started his career in Corporate Relations in 2012 as the Group Corporate Affairs Manager at Coca-Cola İçecek. Konyalıgil joins Food Solutions META now from Mondelez International where he was the Corporate Affairs Director. 

 

About Cargill in Türkiye

Cargill, which started its activities in Türkiye in the 1960s, operates in the food, bioindustrial and animal nutrition sectors. In addition to its headquarters in İstanbul, Türkiye which opened in 1992, it provides services with a total of 670 employees in its offices in Adana and Ankara, and production facilities in Bursa, Balıkesir, Kocaeli and Sakarya. With the addition of the Middle East and North Africa in 2014 and Sub-Saharan Africa in 2018, Türkiye became the administrative center of the region, which includes the Middle East, Türkiye and Africa (META). As of 2021 with Company’s India-Based food ingredient operations joining to META, Türkiye has undertaken the management role of a region with close to 3 billion population. Cargill Türkiye, which continues to work with a focus on sustainability in order to provide the world's nutritional needs in a safe, responsible and sustainable manner, develops innovative products in line with consumer trends and expectations in its four state of the art production facilities.

 

For more information, you can visit www.cargill.com.tr and https://www.facebook.com/CargillTurkey/

 

About Cargill

Cargill’s 155,000 employees across 70 countries work relentlessly to achieve our purpose of nourishing the world in a safe, responsible and sustainable way. Every day, we connect farmers with markets, customers with ingredients, and people and animals with the food they need to thrive.

We combine 155 years of experience with new technologies and insights to serve as a trusted partner for food, agriculture, financial and industrial customers in more than 125 countries. Side-by-side, we are building a stronger, sustainable future for agriculture. For more information, visit Cargill.com and our News Center.