Steve Douglas has been appointed president and chief operating officer of Saputo’s new Ingredients division, moving from the same role in the company’s U.K. Dairy Division. Saputo announced the organizational evolution on September 23, and MarketWatch reported that the restructure is intended to accelerate expansion in higher-margin dairy products. Douglas will remain in his U.K. role until the previously announced sale of that business is complete.
The move is part of a broader leadership redesign rather than a single-seat promotion. Saputo created a dedicated Ingredients division, appointed Haig Poutchigian chief enterprise transformation officer and named Dave Paradis president and COO of the Canadian Dairy Division. The company said the changes are meant to increase focus, accountability and execution without changing its strategic priorities.
A commercial brief for higher-value dairy
Douglas’s new mandate covers commercial, operational, innovation and growth initiatives across the Ingredients division. Saputo’s announcement ties the work to growing demand for higher-value dairy ingredients and to the company’s effort to expand its value-added and high-protein capabilities across global markets.
The parallel transformation role gives the reorganization a second layer. Poutchigian will bring business administration, operational finance and information technology into a single enterprise-services model, with the stated goal of improving consistency, visibility, scalability and the pace of execution. Paradis, meanwhile, will focus on customer partnerships and operational excellence in Canada.
There is no named predecessor for Douglas and no separate start date in the announcement. The useful fact is the operating shape: a long-serving leader is being asked to run a newly defined platform while Saputo completes a portfolio transition in the U.K. The emphasis on clear accountabilities resembles Angi’s move from turnaround to growth under Michael Steib, with structure doing much of the leadership work.
