Hormel Foods appoints new VP of global Food Safety and quality management. Jeremiah Johnson succeeds Richard Carlson, who is retiring Jeremiah Johnson. Photo Credit: LinkedIn Hormel Foods has revealed that Richard Carlson is retiring from his role as VP of global food safety and quality management after a 35-year career with the company, and that Jeremiah Johnson, a 20-year veteran and current director of food safety management, has been appointed as his successor. The transition will take effect on May 1. "Richard has provided dedicated leadership in food safety and quality throughout his tenure," said Jeff Ettinger, interim CEO with Austin, Minn.-based Hormel Foods. "He led our company through critical food safety initiatives, including the expansion into new product categories and implementing new and enhanced food safety protocols." Beginning his career with Hormel Foods in 1990, Carlson started out as a quality and process control engineer at the company's Austin plant and then held multiple quality assurance roles within the company. In 2000, he became the director of quality assurance, and later VP of quality management at Jennie-O, before taking on his current role in 2014. Johnson joined Hormel Foods in 2005 as a quality process control supervisor at the Austin plant before advancing to roles as a quality and process control manager at other plants and facilities. In 2023, he was named assistant director of food safety management and then took on his current role in 2025. He's also an active member and former chair of the Meat Institute Food Safety and Inspection Affairs Committee. In his new role, Johnson will oversee the company's quality, plant operations and food safety activities. "Jeremiah brings deep expertise in food safety, quality and regulatory affairs, along with strong operational knowledge, making him well prepared to lead this critical function," Hormel Foods President John Ghingo said. "He has led key initiatives to strengthen our food safety systems and safeguard the trust consumers place in our brands. Jeremiah's proven ability to lead cross-functional teams, elevate standards and drive continuous improvement make him the right leader for this important role." Hormel is a global branded food company with approximately $12 billion in annual revenue. Its brands include Planters, Skippy, Spam, Hormel Natural Choice, Applegate, Wholly, Hormel Black Label, Columbus, Jennie-O and more than 30 other well-known brands.

Hormel Foods transforms Supply Chain via o9 AI integration. March 30, 2026 Food giant Hormel Foods partners with o9 Solutions and Accenture to deploy an AI-powered Digital Brain platform, boosting agility across 70 global sites Global supply chains have been working to remake their strategies and boost efficiency over the last few years. o9 Solutions, as a result, has been adopted by leading companies around the world as they aim to develop agile and adaptive supply chains. Hormel Foods Corporation is the latest company to adopt the AI-powered digital platform in order to increase efficiency and planning capabilities. Replacing disconnected tool. Supply chains around the world have been adapting to ongoing pressures, both internal and external. The internal pressure for business resilience, cost savings and efficiency is occurring alongside regulatory pressures and geopolitical tensions which are fundamentally changing how supply chains operate. As a result, many businesses are finding the benefit of digital tools and platforms like o9. o9 Solutions is a leading AI-powered platform which helps companies develop agile, autonomous and adaptive supply chains, allowing for better decision-making. This is particularly vital when businesses are facing rising volatility and uncertainty. o9's solutions help improve forecasting accuracy, aid with matching demand and supply as well as encourages collaboration across a multi-tier supply chain. In doing this, it improves resilience, transparency and cost savings. Its technological innovations bring together collaboration, generative AI, real-time learning and inventory management. Hormel Foods is one of the latest companies investing in o9 solutions in order to develop greater planning across its global supply chain. The company has adopted o9's integrated Demand and Supply Planning capabilities with the aim of enacting better operational efficiency. "Hormel Foods operates at a level where planning precision directly impacts performance," explains Chakri Gottemukkala, Co-founder and CEO of o9. "By going live with the o9 Digital Brain platform, Hormel has replaced disconnected tools with a unified enterprise model that links demand signals to supply, inventory and deployment decisions. This foundation enables stronger operational rigor, faster cross-functional alignment and the agility required in a market defined by volatility and change." Better management of the value chain. Hormel Foods operates a significantly complex supply chain network within the food industry, managing thousands of supply items and producing thousands of products. Its global portfolio includes SPAM, SKIPPY, APPLEGATE and PLANTERS. Its foodstuff includes refrigerated foods, deli meats, plant-based offerings and shelf-stable items. As a result, complexities such as perishability, seasonal demand spikes, capacity constraints and multi-tier distribution flows consistently introduce risk and further steps throughout its supply chain planning. In order to better manage its value chain, Hormel has invested in o9, leveraging AI and machine learning forecasting to better understand demand. "Every day, we balance moving thousands of products across multiple channels and storage environments," says Will Bonifant, Chief Supply Chain Officer at Hormel Foods. "By connecting demand, supply and inventory decisions in one streamlined platform, we are shifting from reactive problem-solving to more proactive, data-driven planning. We believe this will strengthen our ability to operate consistently, serve customers more reliably and ultimately, drive additional growth across our brand portfolio." Sustainability, procurement and supply chain leaders won't want to miss Procurement & Supply Chain LIVE, taking place at Navy Pier, Chicago, on April 21-22. Co-located with Sustainability LIVE: The US Summit, the event unites senior decision-makers at a time when supply chains, sustainability and business performance are more interdependent than ever. Secure your place now for The US Summit - group booking discounts available. End-to-end transformation. Hormel's adoption of the platform enables expanding touchless forecasting capabilities, which improves forecast accuracy for seasonal demands and reduces manual overrides. Chakri notes that the o9 platform introduces system-recommended inventory transfers and optimised truckload grouping based on weight, volume and stackability constraints. This allows for better efficiency and more coordinated planning throughout the network. Through this, planners can ensure better, more informed trade-offs through each part of the network, ahead of time. By gaining deeper insights into demand and inventory, there is better alignment across the various segments throughout the supply chain. If a planner has an accurate forecast when they are developing the schedule, they can ensure greater synchronisation. In a collaboration with Accenture, the o9 platform was delivered across the network in a phased process. Through five go-lives across March and December 2025, the software has helped span more than 70 sites across dry and refrigerated networks. "We are partnering with Hormel Foods on the company's strategic, growth-oriented pivot from a supply-led value chain to a demand-driven value chain," adds Adheer Bahulkar, Global Supply Chain Lead for Consumer Industries and client account lead for Hormel Foods at Accenture. "As part of this reinvention, we are building a strong data foundation for Hormel and helping our client use AI, data and analytics to power its planning process and solution. All this is underpinned by strong change management to help Hormel's supply chain planners pave the way for sustained growth." The development is aiming to ensure greater efficiency for Hormel Foods, allowing for end-to-end transformation across its supply chain operations. Will concludes that the shift toward data-driven planning is essential for navigating the current market. Executives. * Adheer Bahulkar Global Supply Chain Lead for Consumer Industries * Chakri Gottemukkala Official member * Will Bonifant Company portals.

o9 Solutions: powering Hormel's Supply Chain transformation. March 30, 2026 Hormel Foods implements o9 Solutions' AI-powered platform to strengthen efficiency and planning capabilities across its global supply chain network Supply chains across the globe have been adapting their approaches and working to enhance operational performance. This shift has led major organisations worldwide to turn to o9 Solutions as they seek to build more agile and responsive supply chain systems. Hormel Foods Corporation has become one of the businesses to implement the AI-powered digital platform, aiming to strengthen its efficiency and planning capabilities. Organisations are navigating a complex landscape where internal demands for business resilience, cost reduction and operational efficiency coincide with external challenges including regulatory requirements and geopolitical instability that are reshaping supply chain operations. These converging pressures have prompted many businesses to explore the potential benefits of digital tools and platforms such as o9. The company offers a leading AI-powered platform that could help organisations build agile, autonomous and adaptive supply chains, which may support improved decision-making processes. This capability could prove particularly valuable as businesses contend with increasing volatility and uncertainty across global markets. Addressing contemporary challenges. The platform's solutions are designed to enhance forecasting accuracy, support the alignment of demand and supply, and facilitate collaboration across multi-tier supply chain networks. These functions could contribute to improved resilience, transparency and cost efficiency. The technological innovations combine collaboration tools, generative AI, real-time learning capabilities and inventory management systems. These integrated capabilities work together to provide organisations with comprehensive visibility across their operations. Hormel Foods represents one of the companies to invest in o9 Solutions as part of efforts to strengthen planning across its global supply chain. The organisation has implemented o9's integrated Demand and Supply Planning capabilities, with the objective of achieving enhanced operational efficiency. "Hormel Foods operates at a level where planning precision directly impacts performance," explains Chakri Gottemukkala, Co-founder and CEO of o9. "By going live with the o9 Digital Brain platform, Hormel has replaced disconnected tools with a unified enterprise model that links demand signals to supply, inventory and deployment decisions. This foundation enables stronger operational rigour, faster cross-functional alignment and the agility required in a market defined by volatility and change." Managing complexity at scale. The food manufacturer operates a notably complex supply chain network within the sector, handling thousands of supply items while producing thousands of products. Its global portfolio encompasses SPAM, SKIPPY, APPLEGATE and PLANTERS. The company's range includes refrigerated foods, deli meats, plant-based alternatives and shelf-stable products. This diverse product mix requires sophisticated planning and coordination across multiple channels. These operations introduce various complexities including perishability considerations, seasonal demand fluctuations, capacity limitations and multi-tier distribution requirements that consistently present challenges throughout supply chain planning. To address these complexities across its value chain, Hormel has adopted o9's platform, utilising AI and machine learning forecasting capabilities to develop better demand insights. "Every day, we balance moving thousands of products across multiple channels and storage environments," says Will Bonifant, Chief Supply Chain Officer at Hormel Foods. "By connecting demand, supply and inventory decisions in one streamlined platform, we are shifting from reactive problem-solving to more proactive, data-driven planning. We believe this will strengthen our ability to operate consistently, serve customers more reliably and ultimately, drive additional growth across our brand portfolio." Enhanced forecasting and coordination. The implementation of o9's platform at Hormel could enable expanded touchless forecasting capabilities, potentially improving forecast accuracy for seasonal demands while reducing manual overrides. The platform introduces system-recommended inventory transfers and optimised truckload grouping based on weight, volume and stackability constraints, which may support enhanced efficiency and more coordinated planning throughout the network. These capabilities could allow planners to make better informed trade-offs across each segment of the network proactively. By developing deeper insights into demand and inventory patterns, there may be improved alignment across the various segments throughout the supply chain. When planners have access to accurate forecasts during schedule development, they could ensure greater synchronisation across operations. Working in collaboration with Accenture, the o9 platform was deployed across Hormel's network through a phased implementation process. Through five go-lives between March and December 2025, the software has been deployed across more than 70 sites spanning dry and refrigerated networks. "We are partnering with Hormel Foods on the company's strategic, growth-oriented pivot from a supply-led value chain to a demand-driven value chain," adds Adheer Bahulkar, Global Supply Chain Lead for Consumer Industries and Client Account Lead for Hormel Foods at Accenture. "As part of this reinvention, we are building a strong data foundation for Hormel and helping our client use AI, data and analytics to power its planning process and solution. All this is underpinned by strong change management to help Hormel's supply chain planners pave the way for sustained growth." The initiative aims to deliver greater efficiency for Hormel Foods, supporting end-to-end transformation across its supply chain operations. Executives. * Adheer Bahulkar Global Supply Chain Lead for Consumer Industries * Chakri Gottemukkala Official member * Will Bonifant Company portals.