Spierings and Boudewijns to Leave FrieslandCampina

Both Theo Spierings and André Boudewijns played key roles in making the merger a reality. I am pleased that they were able to fully dedicate themselves to FrieslandCampina during the important initial months of the integration.

06/05/09 Theo Spierings and André Boudewijns, both members of the Executive Board of the dairy company Royal FrieslandCampina N.V., have announced plans to pursue their careers outside the company. After successfully concluding the merger between Friesland Foods and Campina and overseeing the first few months of integration, they now feel it is time for a career shift.

Theo Spierings (44) has been a member of the Executive Board of Koninklijke FrieslandCampina N.V. since 31 December 2008 as Chief Operating Officer of the business group Consumer Products International. Before this, he held overall responsibility for all business groups at Friesland Foods. Between March 2007 and May 2008, Mr Spierings was Acting President of the Board of Management of Koninklijke Friesland Foods N.V. The long-term strategy Vision 2015 was developed under his leadership. He then helped to lay the groundwork for the merger between Friesland Foods and Campina with the Chairman of dairy cooperative Friesland Foods U.A. Sybren Attema. Theo Spierings: "I have had a wonderful time at FrieslandCampina. Since 1986, I’ve held various positions for the company in different parts of the world. The periods I spent in West Africa and Asia and my time as Acting President of the Board of Management of Friesland Foods were especially inspiring, both professionally and personally. The merger was an excellent move for the cooperatives and the company alike, particularly in the light of recent economic developments. Following the successful conclusion of the merger, it is now time for me to make new choices both on the job and personal fronts. After an extraordinarily intensive period, I have therefore decided to set aside more time for myself and my family and to consider the next stage in my career.’"

Theo Spierings will officially step down on 31 July 2009, but will provisionally remain involved with the business group Consumer Products International in the interests of a smooth transition.

André Boudewijns (54) has been a member of the Executive Board of Koninklijke FrieslandsCampina N.V. since 31 December 2008, as Chief Integration Officer. He has overseen the integration of Friesland Foods and Campina and served as compliance officer for the formalities involved in the remedies imposed by the European Union. From May 2005 until the merger, he was Chief Financial Officer of Koninklijke Friesland Foods N.V. ‘Preparing and completing the merger has been interesting, challenging and intense,’ Mr Boudewijns said. "The merger has created a much stronger company which is more than capable of responding to developments over the next few years. Now that the merger has been finalised and the new systems and integration structure are in place, I feel that my work for FrieslandCampina is complete. It is time for something new. In fact, that was the reason I chose the temporary position of integration officer. I now plan to focus my energies on services in the financial advice, supervision and interim management sectors." Mr Boudewijns will leave FrieslandCampina on 31 May 2009.

Cees ‘t Hart, Chief Executive Officer, said of the announcement: "Both Theo Spierings and André Boudewijns played key roles in making the merger a reality. I am pleased that they were able to fully dedicate themselves to FrieslandCampina during the important initial months of the integration. It was an immense task, and one they completed successfully. In the 12 months we’ve worked together, I have come to greatly value their expertise, dedication, involvement and – not least – the clear focus with which they worked."

Following the departure of Messrs Spierings and Boudewijns, the Executive Board of FrieslandCampina will comprise Cees ’t Hart - Chief Executive Officer, Kees Gielen - Chief Financial Officer, Freek Rijna - Chief Operating Officer business group Consumer Products Western Europe, Piet Hilarides - Chief Operating Officer business group Cheese & Butter and Frans Visser - Chief Operating Officer business group Ingredients.