Marrone Bio Innovations has elected agribusiness, biotechnology and food industry executive Zachary S. Wochok to the company’s board of directors. MBI’s stockholders also reelected the board’s financial expert, George H. Kerckhove.
Pam Marrone, MBI’s Chief Executive Officer and Founder, said, “We are excited to have an executive of Dr. Wochok’s experience and stature join our Board. He was at the ground level during the inception of the agbiotech industry, including founding and taking a company public. More recently, he has led and consulted for food ingredient companies.”
Wochok is currently President and Founder of the consulting company The Wochok Group, LLC. Previously he was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of PGP International, Inc., a 250+ employee stand-alone company of ABF Ingredients Company, a division of Associated British Foods, based in Woodland, CA. Before that, he also served as the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NURTURE, Inc. (in Missoula, MT), as President and Chief Operating Officer of Calgene, Inc., which was then publicly traded, and as the Chief Executive Officer of Plant Genetics, Inc. (also of Davis, CA), during which time the company completed an initial public offering and later merged with Calgene, Inc., creating the largest plant biotechnology company in the United States. He has also served as business development manager in the new ventures department at Monsanto and a lead scientist for Weyerhaeuser Company.
He currently serves as Chairman of UC Davis’ California Institute of Food and Agricultural Research. He also serves as Industry Advisor to Michaelson Capital and is Director/Board Advisor, to Nucelis, Inc. and Cibus Global in San Diego, CA. Previously he served on the Board of Advisors for the biopesticide company Phyllom, Inc.
“I have known Pam Marrone and followed the development of MBI for many years in the Davis agtech community,” said Wochok. “I am excited to assist the Board, Pam and the senior team in implementing the Company’s business strategy. Biologicals are the most important and exciting emerging technology for increased yields and sustainable integrated pest management and MBI is positioned as a thought leader in that segment of the industry.”
Wochok began his career as a professor of biology at the University of Alabama, following an NIH funded post-doctoral position at Yale University. Dr. Wochock received his Ph.D. in Cell Biology and Plant Physiology from the University of Connecticut, an M.S. in Biology from Villanova University and a B.S. in Biology from La Salle University.
