MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, U.S. — Florian Schattenmann has been named vice-president of research and development and innovation at Cargill, effective Nov. 12. Schattenmann will fill Cargill’s top role in R&D and innovation and also will serve as the company’s chief technology officer.

Schattenmann has been with Dow Chemical Co. since 2010, most recently as vice-president of performance and coatings R&D. Before Dow, he worked in scientific and technology-related roles at Sulphco, Inc., Momentive Performance Materials, General Electric Co., and Colgate-Palmolive Co.

He received a doctorate degree in inorganic chemistry from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S., and a Diplom Chemiker degree from the Technische Universität München in Munich, Germany. He holds seven patents.

“Cargill was founded on the premise that there’s a better way to feed the world,” said Ruth Kimmelshue, senior vice-president of Cargill business operations and supply chain. “The work of our research and development team — together with our broad approach to innovation — is critical to fulfilling our purpose of nourishing the world in a safe, responsible, sustainable way. Florian’s vision for innovation, customer orientation, deep scientific and technical expertise, and global outlook make him the ideal R&D leader as we seek to build on Cargill’s deep history of innovation and solutions to address changing consumer trends.”