ECO Animal Health Group plc (LON:ECO), a leader in the development, registration and marketing of pharmaceutical products for the global animal health market, has announced that the Board of the Company has approved David Hallas’s appointment as Chief Executive Officer and a member of the Board with effect from the 1 April 2022. This follows the announcement on the 26 July 2021 regarding Marc Loomes’ intention to retire from ECO during 2022.
David Hallas has over 30 years of experience in the animal health industry and is a qualified veterinarian. He is currently managing director of Sure Petcare, a wholly owned subsidiary of Merck Inc. providing digital based solutions to the companion animal sector with sales of over US$170m. Prior to this role, he was Associate Vice President of MSD Animal Health with full P&L responsibility for mid Europe which comprised a group of 7 European countries with a combined revenue of over US$450m; he has also held senior global, regional and business unit management roles in other animal health businesses within Merck, Schering Plough and Pfizer (now Zoetis) and lived and worked overseas including in the USA. David has substantial experience managing profitable growth through the introduction of new products, including vaccines, and successful merger and acquisition integrations.
Marc Loomes will resign from the Board of ECO on 1 April 2022 and has agreed to support David and the Company in an advisory role for a period of time to ensure a full and thorough handover is effected.
Andrew Jones, Chairman of ECO Animal Health said:
“We are delighted that David has agreed to join ECO as CEO. He has considerable experience in all our major markets and product areas, and an excellent track record of managing and delivering profitable growth both in large and smaller businesses. We look forward to working with him to build shareholder value in the next exciting phase of ECO’s development. The Board also sincerely thanks Marc for his invaluable contribution to the growth and success of ECO over the last 17 years.”
