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Australian agribusiness leader Angus Street has been appointed chief executive of The New Zealand Merino Company (NZM).
Mr Street replaces the company’s inaugural chief executive, John Brakenridge, who announced in October last year that he would be stepping down in six months time.
Mr Brakenridge, who was also NZM’s co-founder and spent 27 years as chief executive, has been described as transforming New Zealand’s merino industry.
In a statement last week, NZM said Mr Street brought "a wealth of agribusiness leadership experience" to the Christchurch-based company.
Since 2018, he has been chief executive of AuctionsPlus, the largest agriculture marketplace in Australia and he previously held senior roles at Hort Innovation, Meat & Livestock Australia and Bastion Collective.
He grew up in rural New South Wales and his family’s roots could be traced back to the birth of the wool industry in Australia in 1797.
Having a passion for innovation and sustainability in the agricultural sector, staying connected to the rural sector was important to him and the opportunity to join NZM was a "real honour", Mr Street said.
Mr Street, his wife and their two young children would relocate to Christchurch, where he would begin the role in early August.
In the interim, the company’s chief operating officer Peter Floris was set to continue as acting chief operating officer.
