Gary T. Steele, CEO
Mr. Steele has been President, Chief Executive Officer and a director of the Company since 1991 and Chairman of the Board of Directors since January 1996. Mr. Steele has 30 years of experience in the biotechnology, instrumentation and material science fields. From 1985 to 1991, Mr. Steele was President and Chief Executive Officer of Molecular Devices Corporation, a bioanalytical instrumentation company. Prior to Molecular Devices Corporation, Mr. Steele was Vice President, ProductDevelopment and Business Development at Genentech, Inc. and also held positions at McKinsey & Company and Shell Oil Company. Mr. Steele holds a BS from Georgia Tech and an MBA from Stanford.
Gregory S. Skinner, CFO
Mr. Skinner serves as Landec’s Chief Financial Officer and Vice President of Administration and has been an employee of the company since 1996 where he originally was hired as the company’s Controller. Prior to joining Landec, Mr. Skinner was Controller of DNA Plant Technology, an early pioneer in applying transgenic biotechnology to problems in agriculture. Mr. Skinner has also held various positions with Litton Electron Devices and Arthur Anderson & Company. Mr. Skinner holds a BS in accounting from Tulsa University.
Molly A. Hemmeter, CCO
Ms. Hemmeter has served as Chief Commercial Officer of Landec since June 2009. Prior to joining Landec, Ms. Hemmeter was Vice President of Global Marketing and New Business Development for the Performance Materials division of Ashland, Inc., a global specialty chemicals company. Prior to joining Ashland, Inc., Ms. Hemmeter held various executive positions at Siterra Corporation, Bausch & Lomb and Eli Lilly & Company. Ms Hemmeter holds BS and MEng degrees in chemical engineering from the University of Louisville and an MBA from Harvard.
Damian A. Hajduk, Ph.D., CSO
Dr. Hajduk has served as Landec’s Chief Scientific Officer since April 2010. Prior to joining Landec, Dr. Hajduk was Vice President of Performance Materials and Formulations at Symyx Technologies, Inc., a pioneer in the application of high throughput research practices to the chemical, energy, and life science industries. Prior to his assignment as Vice President, Dr. Hajduk held a variety of scientific and leadership positions at Symyx and served as a research associate at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Hajduk holds a BA in physics from Dartmouth College as well as an MA and PhD in physics from Princeton University.
Steven P. Bitler, Ph.D., VP Corporate Technology
Dr. Bitler serves as Landec’s Vice President of Corporate Technology and has been an employee of the company since 1988, joining only two years after the company was founded. From 1988, Dr. Bitler held various positions within Landec and was integral in the Company’s polymer product development and thermal switch products. Prior to joining Landec, Dr. Bitler developed new high strength polymeric materials at SRI International. Dr. Bitler holds a BS in chemistry from Boston College and a PhD in chemistry from the University of Southern California.
Ronald L. Midyett, CEO Apio Inc.
Mr. Midyett has served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Apio, Landec’s fresh-cut produce and food packaging technology subsidiary and has been with the company since 2005. Prior to joining Apio, Mr. Midyett was Senior Vice President of Operations for Dole Fresh Vegetables. Mr. Midyett has over 24 years of technology and operations experience in the produce industry. Mr. Midyett currently serves as a member of the board of directors of the United Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Association and Windset Farms. Mr. Midyett holds a BS in Food Biochemistry from University of California Davis.
Dennis J. Allingham, CEO Lifecore Biomedical
Mr. Allingham serves as President and Chief Executive Officer of Lifecore Biomedical, and has been with Lifecore for over 15 years. Previous to his position as CEO, Mr. Allingham served as Lifecore’s General Manager and Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Allingham has over 25 years of progressive business and management experience in executive and director positions within the pharmaceutical and health care distribution, manufacturing and retail industries. Mr. Allingham holds a BBA from the University of Michigan.
