MacLeod to step down from Fonterra board

He will step down at the co-op’s annual meeting on November 2.

MacLeod says his decision had been difficult to make, but as the end of his second term on the Fonterra board approached, he had discussed his future plans with his wife and family.

He has determined, given his other priorities, and the extensive time commitment required by a role on the Fonterra Board, to focus his energies on his other governance roles.

Fonterra chairman John Wilson says MacLeod was a dedicated, hard-working director with a strong commitment to the cooperative’s principles.

“On behalf of the board and our farmers I’d like to personally thank David for his contribution and commitment to our cooperative over the last six years. He has served on our board during a period of significant change, including the introduction of Trading Among Farmers, our business strategy refresh and more recently the governance and representation review. He always demonstrated considerable commercial acumen, energy and passion for regional New Zealand in his role on the board.

“We wish David well in his future endeavours and look forward to continuing to work with him in his various, and future, leadership roles,” says Wilson.

Fonterra also confirmed that farmer director Ian Farrelly would be standing down from the board on November 2.

Farrelly retired from the board in 2016 after nine years as a director but returned, at the board’s request, in January 2017 to fill the casual vacancy created when Michael Spaans’ resigned for medical reasons.