New York, NY – August 20, 2014 – Nagase America is pleased to announce the hiring of Sharrann Simmons in the newly created position of Senior Business Manager for the Life Sciences division. Her initial focus will be on Nagase’s growing specialty food ingredient portfolio, which is marketed to the food, dietary supplements, and food service industries.

“Sharrann brings significant food industry experience and proven expertise to Nagase which is essential to the growth of our food ingredients activities. This new position reinforces Nagase’s commitment to grow their food ingredients business on a global scale,” commented Brad Hilborn, Director of Business Development at Nagase America Corporation.

Ms. Simmons' career focus has been on the supply side of the food industry and her roles have included sales and marketing management, technical management, commercial development, and general management for leading global food and ingredient companies including Bunge, FMC, Nexira, and the Silliker division of Merieux NutriSciences. Sharrann brings global experience to Nagase, including a 5-year international marketing assignment in Brussels, Belgium. She holds BS and MS degrees in Food Science from Purdue University and has also attended the Executive MBA program at Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Graduate Management.

Sharrann has been actively involved with the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), on both a local and national level, throughout her career. She was recently elected to serve on the national Board of Directors of IFT for the 2014-2016 term. She achieved the distinction of “Certified Food Scientist” (CFS) in 2013, and has been honored by Purdue University as a Distinguished Alumni in the School of Agriculture (2003).

Nagase has a diverse line of food ingredients including functional ingredients, enzymes, and film forming agents. Their TREHA™ trehalose ingredient is a unique, multi-functional ingredient with many value-added applications in processed foods. TREHA™ trehalose is manufactured by Hayashibara Co., Ltd., a Nagase Group company in Japan. Nagase recently finalized an exclusive agreement with Cargill for distribution of TREHA™ trehalose in the US and Europe for food, beverage, and supplement applications.

For more information visit nagase.com.

Contact: Michael Moses, 212-703-1343, michael.moses@nagase-nam.com

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About Nagase America:
Nagase America is a global leader in innovative solutions for the chemicals, plastics, electronics, life sciences, and automotive markets. We are a member of the NAGASE Group, founded in 1832 and now encompassing over 100 companies in 20 countries and 5,900 employees worldwide. For more information, visit nagase.com.

Update:
Hayashibara Co., Ltd. changed its corporate name to Nagase Viita Co., Ltd. as of April 1st, 2024.