• Distinguished food and fresh produce leader Denis Punter has been appointed as Chairman of SoilPoint to help guide the global expansion of SoilPoint's sustainable soil solution, SoilPoint's Soil Booster. Denis brings decades of transformative leadership in the fresh produce industry to the Company.
• He is joined on the Board by experienced CFO Susan Lowther.
• Denis and Susan will work closely with the recently appointed SoilPoint CEO Alan Forrester and bring investor relations and financial expertise to support the Company in its plans to scale the business.

SoilPoint Humic Co ("SoilPoint" or "the Company"), a leader in innovative soil solutions which support sustainably intensive farming, has announced the appointment of Denis Punter as its Non-Executive Chairman, and Susan Lowther as Chief Financial Officer and Executive Director. The new Board will work with the current shareholders to execute plans to scale the business.

A former Chairman of Total Produce plc, (now a part of Dole plc), Denis joins SoilPoint at an exciting juncture in the Company's growth, with SoilPoint having recently launched major initiatives in the UK, Spain and Costa Rica, to demonstrate the effectiveness of its sustainable soil solution, SoilPoint's Soil Booster, in restoring depleted soils, increasing crop yields and reducing farmers' net input costs.

As Chairman of Total Produce, Denis helped build the Company to become the UK's largest fresh produce business with annual sales of $850m. Alongside chairing the UK businesses, he supported Total's expansion in the US, expanding their business in North America from launch to over $2 billion in annual revenue. He subsequently worked on the merger of Total Produce with Dole which led to Dole's IPO in North America resulting in the creation of Dole plc. With a turnover of $10 billion, Dole plc is the largest fresh produce company in the World.

Susan joins SoilPoint as Chief Financial Officer and brings extensive experience of growing companies and executing M&A transactions. Susan's public company experience includes global biopharmaceutical group Arecor Therapeutics plc, neuroscience imaging and biomarker analytics company, IXICO and healthcare diagnostics business Lab21. She is an independent Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Audit & Risk Committee of BiVictrix Therapeutics. 

With a proven track record of growing businesses, Denis and Susan will help the Company, led by CEO Alan Forrester, become a major name in the global agricultural industry, as it expands the global distribution and deployment of SoilPoint's Soil Booster. SoilPoint's Soil Booster is a UK Soil Association-certified soil conditioner developed to help farmers restore depleted topsoil, support crop yields, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by improving overall soil health. SoilPoint's Soil Booster can lead to an estimated crop yield increase of up to 30% and more in some recent cases.

In March, with leading agricultural supply chain manager, Cefetra, SoilPoint launched a pioneering soil health initiative which will see up to 36 UK farmers replace nitrate fertilisers and other chemical inputs with SoilPoint's Soil Booster. In April, SoilPoint entered a three-way partnership with insurance provider Cornish Mutual, and Terrafarmer, a specialist in soil health and regenerative farming solutions, to use SoilPoint's Soil Booster at several farms covered by Cornish Mutual in Southwest England. 

Denis Punter, Chairman of SoilPoint, said: "There is a real opportunity to transform global food production as demand for more sustainable farming practices grows. SoilPoint's innovative solutions have an immense potential to drive meaningful change to help farmers restore depleted topsoil, support crop yields, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. I'm excited to have the opportunity to help the Company expand its global presence."

Alan Forrester, CEO of SoilPoint, commented: "The appointment of Denis and Susan comes at an important moment for SoilPoint. As we look to scale our operations and expand our trial programs, their expertise will be invaluable. With their help, we can accelerate our commercialisation timeline and get SoilPoint's Soil Booster to more farmers. Better soils and reduced nitrogen use go hand in hand with maintaining productive and profitable farming, including sustainably intensive farming, which is essential for the future of agriculture."