The latest news, trends, analysis, interviews and podcasts from the global food and beverage industry

John Krzywicki has been named as the next CEO of Checkerspot, biotech pioneer in microalgae technologies.

Founded in 2016, Checkerspot is a biotech company that develops high-value triglyceride fats and oils, sustainably produced at scale and cost, providing essential ingredients for nutrition and materials for a healthier planet.

According to the company, the news follows a string of successful laboratory and commercial developments in food and nutrition, which Krzywicki helped lead.

Krzywicki previously oversaw the creation and growth of Spotlight, a division of Checkerspot which develops cooking fats and oils, using the platform technology.

Checkerspot’s founder and chief scientific officer, Scott Franklin, said: “Checkerspot’s mission at the outset was to identify the most promising applications to achieve rapid adoption and growth of our algal technologies".

“With the support of John, we’ve done that, matching the innovations coming out of our molecular foundry with increasing customer awareness and demand. John’s leadership brings renewed focus, which is coupled with strong market validation. He’s the right person at the right time.”

Krzywicki commented: “The applications for Checkerspot’s market ready technology, particularly within food and nutrition supply chains, are incredibly intriguing. Scott and the molecular foundry have decades of experience tailoring molecular solutions to some of the most challenging problems we face."

“Our task moving forward is to implement those solutions at scale, working with both new and familiar partners to realise our technologies' potential.”

Going forward, Checkerspot will focus specifically on the development and licensing of microalgal strains that can produce high impact fats, oils and materials.

Krzywicki added: “We’ve refined our model significantly so that we can focus on providing partners with a specific set of solutions to their ingredient and material needs. The market is clearly asking for our solutions and we’re orienting our business to be hyper-efficient in providing them.”