JACKSON, MICH. – John Schmitz has been promoted to chief operating officer, Americas, a new position at Dawn Foods. He will continue to oversee Dawn’s North America business while also taking on accountability for Latin America. He will report directly to Carrie Jones-Barber, Dawn’s chief executive officer.

Emilio Castillo will continue as president of Latin America, leading the Latin American business unit, managing its leadership team and being responsible for day-to-day operations in the region. He will report to Schmitz.

Schmitz, who has 30 years of experience in the food and beverage and retail sectors, joined Dawn in 2020 as president of North America. Prior to joining Dawn, he served for 12 years as vice president, general manager of Land O’Lakes’ international business, which included Europe, Africa and Latin America.

Schmitz received a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Minnesota and a master’s degree in business administration from the Tuck School of Business – Dartmouth College.

“John has been a driving force behind Dawn’s success in North America, demonstrating exceptional leadership and a clear strategic vision,” Jones-Barber said. “He has built a strong leadership team, delivered outstanding results, and helped position us for long-term success. I am confident that his expertise and experience working throughout Mexico and Latin America will drive us to even greater success as he steps into this new role.”