Farmer-direct coffee company THRIVE Farmers welcomed Tom Minella to its leadership team as vice president of business development, bringing more than 25 years of restaurant marketing expertise to expand its restaurant and hospitality industry reach. Minella has worked with major food and beverage brands in the past including Pizza Hut, Coca-Cola, McDonald’s and Red Bull.

Firmenich announced the election of Patrick Firmenich as chairman of the board of directors, after serving as vice chairman since 2014 and leading the company as CEO for 12 years between 2002 and 2014. He succeeds Yves Boisdron, who is retiring from the board after a decade in which he significantly contributed to the success of the company.

Nicole Glenn is the new vice president of marketing at Applegate. She was previously a marketing director for WhiteWave Foods, where she was most recently responsible for leading the Earthbound Farms organic produce business. Glenn's brand marketing experience also includes positions with Constellation Brands, Terlato Wines International and Procter & Gamble.

Mamma Chia announced the addition of four executive team members: Ken Vargha, executive vice president of sales and marketing; Lance Dermeik, vice president of operations; Steve Polzin, director of sales; and Brenda Quesada, director of R&D and technical services.

Bob's Red Mill President and CEO Bob Moore won the 23rd Annual Golden Spurtle World Porridge Making Championship in Scotland.

Incubator and venture fund Sonoma Brands announced Jennifer Berliner as its first brand-specific hire for ZÜPA NOMA, the first brand launched by the company. Berliner will serve as director of marketing and will be responsible for defining brand messaging and setting marketing strategy for the "whole without the bowl" brand. Most recently, she led shopper marketing at top national retailers for three of PepsiCo’s $1.5B+ food and beverage brand portfolios: LiptonTea, Hydration and Frito-Lay multipack snacks.

Nora Pouillon, renowned pioneer of the organic food movement in the U.S., is planning to retire from her restaurant in order to devote more time to the industry she helped to launch. Approaching its 38th year in business, Restaurant Nora became the first certified organic restaurant in the country in 1999 and has been a beacon for restaurants pursuing organic certification.

Marketing, branding and public relations agency BrandHive hired Ryan Hogan as its media communications manager. He previously spent five years as communications director for Xclear, a leading manufacturer of xylitol products.

Former U.S. Secretary of Education under the Obama administration Arne Duncan has joined the board of directors for Revolution Foods. Revolution Foods serves more than 2 million freshly prepared meals each week to students in schools across the country and has a fast-growing line of innovative meal solutions available in more than 4,500 grocery stores including Safeway, Target, Walmart and Whole Foods.