Agtech veteran Sonia Lo takes on new roles after John Purcell steps down
Sonia Lo has been appointed president and chief executive of Bayer and Temasek-backed vertical farming specialist Unfold.
Lo takes over from John Purcell, who will remain with Unfold but who has stepped down from the chief executive role to support his family. She has also been appointed a member of the company’s board of directors and will begin all three roles effective immediately.
Lo is a highly regarded agtech executive with over 20 years of experience and a proven track record of scaling indoor agriculture operations. Most recently, Lo was the chief executive of Sensei Ag, Larry Ellison and David Agus’ agtech venture in indoor farming.
Prior to Sensei Ag, Lo was chief executive of Crop One Holdings, a vertical farming company that owns FreshBoxFarms and a joint venture with Emirates Flight Catering in Dubai; and held various leadership roles including at Google and eZoka, which she co-founded.
She is also the founder of Chalsys Impact, an investment vehicle focused on shortening and improving global food supply chains.
“Sonia’s wealth of experience and deep understanding of the indoor agriculture industry worldwide paired with her commitment to building and maintaining an inclusive company culture are invaluable as Unfold scales operations and expands its partnerships globally,” said Derek Norman, a member of the Unfold board of directors.
Lo said she was honoured to join the Unfold at such an important moment for both the company and the industry.
“In a short period, Unfold has become a trusted premium seed provider in the vertical farming industry as evidenced by its Innovation Partner Program, which includes nearly ten leading companies across four continents,” said Lo.
“I’ve dedicated my career to scaling indoor agriculture operations with investment strategy and technology. Unfold has a unique opportunity with its industry-leading germplasm and team, to help feed the world sustainably. I look forward to working with the team and its partners to propel the business to its next chapter of growth.”
