Management

Since joining Arla Foods in 1987, Peder has progressively worked his way up through Senior Management positions. Firstly through marketing roles in Germany, Saudi Arabia and Denmark, and later through general management roles such as Divisional Director and Group Executive Director with responsibility for the Nordic markets. In 2005, he became CEO of Arla Foods aged 42, the youngest CEO in the company’s history. Peder holds a MSc in Economics and Business Administration from Odense University.

In 2011, Peter became head of Arla Denmark and in 2014, he moved to Leeds to take responsibility for Arla UK. Since 2016, he has been CCO of Arla Foods' European business and in 2019 he also became member of the Executive Board. Peter holds a master’s degree in business economics from University of Aarhus and began his career as a management consultant. Since then, Peter has completed executive education at Wharton Business School, Columbia Business School and is a member of World50. 

Torben joined Arla in 2012 as a Business Controller in Corporate Finance after several years in the M&A consultancy industry. With record speed, he moved up in the organisation through various leadership roles with responsibility for strategic finance and performance management. In 2018, he became Senior Director of Performance Management and a member of the Group finance leadership team. In July 2020, at the age of 38, Torben was appointed CFO with the overall responsibility for Finance, IT and Legal in Arla. He holds a Master of Science in Finance and International Business from Aarhus University.

David joined Arla Foods in 2020. Prior to becoming Arla’s Chief Supply Chain Officer, he had spent 26 years in a number of Supply Chain & Operations roles and held several senior leadership positions in the food industry with Mars, Mondelez and Danone. Before joining Arla, his most recent position was Senior Vice President Operations for Danone’s Specialized Nutrition Division, operating globally in the Early Life & Medical Nutrition fields. David holds an Engineering Degree from ‘Ecole Civil des Mines de Paris’ in France and a Master’s Degree in Mathematics.

Since joining Arla Foods in 1989, Hanne has had a number of marketing, sales and commercial roles, whereof she has worked for a number of years in Arla UK. Hanne joined Arla’s global team in 2010 as Senior Vice President of the Butter and Spreads category, where she also took on the responsibility of the Arla brand, before becoming Senior Vice President of Global Categories and Brands in 2012. She joined Arla's Executive Management Team in 2016, when she became EVP of Marketing, Innovation, Communication & Sustainability and transitioned into her current role in January 2022. Hanne holds a master’s degree in Economics from Aarhus School of Business.

Simon Stevens became CCO of Arla Foods’ International business in January 2021. He joined Arla in 2002 as UK Sales Director, before becoming Senior Vice President for Sales and Marketing. In 2016, Simon moved to the newly set-up Europe Zone as Senior Vice President for Commercial Operations and moved to Dubai to lead the MENA business in 2020. He holds a BSc Hons in First Class Management Sciences from Loughborough University.

Ola joined Arla in 2006 as head of HR and in 2007 he became CHRO and a part of Arla’s executive management team. Prior to joining Arla, he worked 12 years for Unilever in various senior HR management positions within the Nordic and European divisions. He holds a MSc in HR Administration from Lund University and he spent 3½ years as an officer in the Royal Swedish Army.

Patrik Hansson, a Swedish national, became Chief Marketing Officer of Arla Foods in 2022 with responsibility for the Global Brands, Innovation and Digital Marketing functions and strategies. Patrik joined Arla in 2011 as Commercial Vice President for Cheese, Butter and Fruit Drinks. In 2015 he was appointed Vice President for Arla’s South East Asia business, before returning to his home country in late 2016 as Managing Director for Arla in Sweden. In 2021 Patrik Hansson became Managing Director for Arla in Germany, his most recent role before taking on the role as CMO.