Food manufacturer Samworth Brothers has revealed that the role of chief executive will be passed to current chief commercial officer Simon Wookey.

CEO Hugo Mahoney will leave the manufacturer to “pursue other opportunities”, with Simon Wookey taking over the role as of Monday 1st July.

Wookey previously worked at Greencore for 20 years, then joined Maple Lead Foods in Toronto, Canada for four years. He returned to the UK in 2012, working at 2 Sisters Group in a number of senior positions, and now boasts a 35-year career in the food industry.

Chairman of Samworth Brothers, Mark Samworth, said: “Under Hugo’s leadership the business continued its recovery from Covid and its aftermath and rose to the challenge of successfully managing and mitigating significant inflationary pressures.

“With the executive team, he has reset our business strategy and has refined our operating model and ways of working to help us better act as one Samworth Brothers with our customers and suppliers.

“Samworth Brothers is well positioned for the future, and in the years to come the business will benefit from his development of our modernisation programme. Hugo has made a significant contribution to the performance of our business, and we wish him every success in the future.”