Algaia names co-founder Frederic Faure as CEO

French marine ingredients company Algaia has appointed Frédéric Faure, one of the co-founders of the company, as CEO, effective from 1 June.

Faure will succeed Fabrice Bohin who has been appointed the new president of Diana Food within Symrise Nutrition. Bohin will remain a shareholder of Algaia and a member of the board of administration.

Prior to forming Algaia in 2016, Faure held various positions for large groups such as product manager at Cargill and plant manager and process development engineer at Lucas Meyer.

As co-founder of Algaia, Faure served as business development director and piloted the set-up of the R&D centre in Saint Lô, Normandy in France.

Within four years, Algaia has grown from a start-up with a turnover of less than €500,000 to exporting to almost 50 countries in the world with a turnover of over €20 million.

The appointment follows the company’s latest funding round in which it secured €2.2 million after recording more than 25% growth in the first four months of 2020, compared to the previous year. 

“The company is entering a new era. Its main challenges lie now in meeting the growth in demand and increasing its production capacities for both Alginates and Biostimulants,” said current CEO Fabrice Bohin.

He continued: “It now needs a general management with a stronger industrial background, located in the immediate vicinity of its production site. I am handing over to Frederic who will benefit from a very experienced management team capable of taking Algaia to the next level.” 

Algaia works with local fishermen to harvest brown algae to ensure a constant fresh and renewable supply of seaweed biomass. The company produces natural seaweed extracts and solutions for the food and nutraceutical industries worldwide.

Franck Hennequart, Algaia innovation director, added: “Algaia is today recognised worldwide as a key player in seaweed extracts. The quality of our products and our service no longer needs to be demonstrated.

“Now, the objective is to continue to develop innovative and sustainable natural solutions for the food, cosmetic, medical devices and plant health industries.”