PITTSBURGH — The board of directors of Kraft Heinz Co. has announced its intent to elevate Miguel Patricio to chairman, subject to his reelection at the company’s 2022 annual meeting of stockholders. Patricio will succeed Alexandre Behring, who will retire after serving as chairman since July 2015.

Patricio has been chief executive officer of Kraft Heinz since July 2019. He joined the company from Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev), where he spent two decades in a variety of roles, including chief marketing officer, zone president of Asia-Pacific, zone president of North America and vice president of marketing for the North America zone. Prior to AB InBev, Patricio was CMO for Cervejaria Ambev and vice president of marketing for Philip Morris International. Earlier in his career he was global marketing director for The Coca-Cola Co. and global marketing director for Johnson & Johnson.

“We are very pleased with the progress experienced by the company in advancing its strategic plan during the past few years under Miguel’s leadership and see his elevation to chair as a natural progression, providing a continuation of strong and consistent stewardship to guide the company well into the future,” Behring said. “I have enjoyed my time working alongside Miguel, the board, and the Kraft Heinz leadership team.”

In addition to Patricio’s elevation to chair, Kraft Heinz announced the nomination of James Park to the board. Park is a technology entrepreneur who co-founded Fitbit, Inc. Fitbit was acquired by Google in January 2021, and Park is now vice president and general manager of Fitbit at Google.