New chief executive named at FCPC

Food and Consumer Products of Canada has named its new CEO: Michael Graydon, whose career includes time at Sobeys and the B.C. Lottery Corporation.

He takes over Sept. 12 from long-serving CEO Nancy Croitoru, who announced her retirement several months ago.

In a press statement, FCPC noted that Graydon has experience “in a variety of important industries, including advertising, grocery retail, foodservice and food processing."

“Each of these roles provides relevant experience with many facets of the food and consumer products industry and gives him a solid platform for growth,” the release added.

Graydon spent six years as president and CEO of the B.C. Lottery Corporation, starting in 2008. Before that, he spent seven years as president and CEO of Mega Group Inc., a buying group of furniture, appliance and consumer electronics dealers.

He also spent two years in the late 1990s as executive VP of marketing and retail brands with Sobeys.

FCPC said that Graydon has a "proven track record of strong and active leadership, proactive and collaborative stakeholder engagement, and he knows how to grow and sustain results."

Graydon’s most recent post was president of Parq Holdings Limited, developer of the Parq Vancouver Resort casino. Graydon took that post just days after leaving B.C. Lottery, prompting B.C.'s Ministry of Finance to do an internal audit that found him in conflict of interest during his final two months at the lottery. But the department also found no evidence that Parq had benefited from that conflict.

Graydon recently moved from Vancouver to Toronto and, according to FCPC, will spend the next several weeks working with staff at the foodmakers association and “reaching out to our many partners and stakeholders to proactively engage in discussions and collaborate on our key issues.”