Dive Brief:
- Ocean Spray Cranberries named Abigail Buckwalter as president and CEO, tapping into her 20 years of leadership experience across consumer-packaged goods and healthcare to lead the farmer cooperative’s next chapter.
- Buckwalter joins Ocean Spray from Nestlé Health Science U.S., where she managed the multi-billion-dollar portfolio of global consumer and healthcare brands for the last three years as CEO.
- The cranberry space has been among the biggest beneficiaries of a surge in interest in minimally processed and better-for-you foods. The global cranberry market was valued at $2.2 billion in 2023 and is projected to grow to $3.1 billion by 2030, a compound annual growth rate of 4.7%, according to Grand View Research.
Dive Insight:
As Ocean Spray continues tapping into the health trend that has been a tailwind for its business over the last several years, it’s turning to an executive who has extensive experience doing just that.
Buckwalter has been a leader at Nestlé Health Science since its inception 15 years ago, providing her the ability to work firsthand with consumer-focused brands such as nutritional drinks Boost and Carnation Breakfast Essentials.
Ocean Spray noted she was also instrumental in shaping Nestlé Health Science’s direction and impact, including overseeing portfolio reviews, turnaround of key businesses and accelerating innovation pipelines that have driven market share gains and profitable growth. These are all attributes she will need to bring to the nearly 100-year-old Ocean Spray.
"Our industry finds itself at an incredibly dynamic tipping point in consumer behavior and buying habits,” Buckwalter said in a statement. “Ocean Spray, with its iconic brand and global platform, is uniquely positioned to deliver against those expectations around taste and health benefits.”
Ocean Spray has been aggressively positioning the cranberry in recent years to better reflect today’s health and wellness trends.
In 2024, it launched drink mixes of some of its most popular juices without added sugar. A year earlier, Ocean Spray unveiled a Zero Sugar line of its flagship juice with 5 calories, zero grams of sugar per cup and no added sugar. The Massachusetts-based company also sells snacks such as Greek yogurt flavored dipped cranberry bites and fresh fruits that include strawberries, blueberries and, of course, cranberries.
