New Kraft CEO Named

Former Kraft Cheese Division President Betsy Holden has been named president/CEO of Kraft Foods Inc.

Holden, currently Kraft Foods executive vice president, succeeds Robert Eckert, who jumped ship to join Los Angeles-based toy maker Mattel Inc. as chairman and CEO.

"Betsy Holden's breadth of management experience at Kraft, strong leadership abilities and passion for growing our food business make her ideal for this position," Kraft COO William Webb said this week. "We can count on Betsy to expertly build upon Kraft's success in achieving undisputed leadership of the food industry."

The 44-year-old Holden joined Kraft in 1982, holding several positions, including president, Tombstone Pizza Division; and vice president, Marketing, Dinners and Enhancers.

As executive vice president of the corporation, she has been responsible for operations, R&D, quality, procurement, consumer insights, communications and e-commerce.

Irene Rosenfeld, executive vice president of Kraft and president of Kraft Canada, has been named group vice president of Kraft and president of Kraft Canada, reporting to Holden. She'll oversee operations, R&D, quality, procurement, consumer insights, communications and e-commerce.

"We anticipate that (Rosenfield) will continue to provide guidance to our Canadian business as well as lead Kraft's innovative initiatives in e-commerce and a number of key functional areas," Webb said.

Eckert had been employed by Kraft since 1977 during which time he served as general manager, cheese, among several other positions, including the CEO post, which he assumed in 1997.

Edited by Gerry Clark