Fontaine Santé Foods taps former General Mills exec as CEO

Montreal-based Fontaine Santé Foods has named Joe Ens as its new CEO.

Ens brings more than 25 years of consumer packaged goods (CPG) experience to the company’s operations and brands, and most recently served as CEO of High Key, a maker of gluten-free and sugar-free cookies, crackers, wafers and chocolates.

The executive previously spent more than 20 years at General Mills in various leadership roles growing cereal brands such as Cheerios, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Lucky Charms and Trix. He also served as VP on the company’s snack bars business unit that includes brands like Nature Valley and Fiber One.

For his last stint at General Mills, Ens was tapped as regional CEO of Australasia.

"It's exciting to join Fontaine Santé at this stage in its transformation," said Ens in a statement. "The company has always made incredible products, and the Fontaine Santé brand is a favorite in Canada. Now it's time to get consumers across North America reaching for all of our brands. We know there's a desire to eat healthier, but who wants to give up on taste? By focusing on brand building, we can introduce more people to delicious foods made from plants and set the company up for its next phase of growth."

Fontaine Santé Foods, owned by Arbor Investments, makes plant-forward refrigerated foods, including hummus, dips, salads, salsa and tofu. The company makes its products at manufacturing facilities located in Quebec and Michigan. In the U.S., it sells products under the Lantana and Garden Fresh Gourmet brands.

"Joe is an accomplished executive with a passion for building high-performance teams that can align and deliver on a strategic plan," said Carl Allegretti, president of Arbor Investments and chairman of the board for Fontaine Santé, in a statement. "His understanding of CPG, the dynamics of U.S. and Canadian markets, and experience with challenger brands will be pivotal to driving continued growth at the company."