Fall Creek Farm & Nursery has boosted its commercial team in Latin America with two key appointments. Rodrigo Cilloniz has been named commercial manager for Peru, while Ricardo Marquez becomes commercial manager for Mexico.
Both will be responsible for establishing and developing strong relationships with the company’s blueberry nursery and genetics customers in their respective markets, overseeing the implementation and administration of new genetics licensing programmes, and managing the customer service, sales and grower support team.
Cilloniz, who is based in Lima and reports to Ricardo Polis, Fall Creek’s regional director for South America, has more thana decade of experience in the agriculture industry, from project management and sales to executive leadership positions.
Most recently, he was general manager of Peru’s Agricola Ginobeto, where he led the development of a strategic plan to finance and develop 600ha of fruits and vegetables as well as the organisational structure to maintain the business.
Previously, he was a project manager for Agricola Cerro Prieto, a large commercial grower of avocados, blueberries, table grapes and asparagus, and business unit manager for three large agro-industrial and forestry projects of ICCGSA Inversiones in Peru: Uvas del Norte (table grapes); Agricultural Corporation Olmos (avocados, tables grapes and asparagus); and ICCGSA Forestal (sustainable bolaina timber).
“Rodrigo will be a great customer advocate for commercial growers because he was one himself,” said Polis. “We are pleased to welcome him to the Fall Creek team in South America.”
“I was interested in Fall Creek’s innovative approach, the company’s focus on genetics, research and development and, of course, their leadership in the blueberry industry,” said Cilloniz. “I’m excited to serve the market with new blueberry varieties and to share Fall Creek’s company culture and business model with my country and my region.”
Marquez has more than15 years of experience in agricultural companies, from managing key accounts and the customer experience to coordinating product quality, regulatory compliance, and operational efficiency efforts.
Most recently, he was sales and technology development manager for Advanta Seeds in Mexico, where he developed corn and sorghum evaluation trials and provided technical training to the sales team.
Previously, he held technical product development and account management positions with Dupont Pioneer, a worldwide leader in agricultural genetics and biotechnology, and was counselor for agricultural production and international commodities acquisitions with Grupo Modelo, Mexico’s largest brewery.
“Ricardo understands the importance of customer relationships combined with high-quality technical execution,” said Fall Creek’s co-CEO Cort Brazelton. “That combination is key to our customers’ success and we are pleased to welcome him to the Fall Creek team.”
“I’m excited to join a company that sees the value and supports the success of the whole industry,” said Marquez.
“I’ve watched as the blueberry business has expanded tremendously in Mexico and heard about Fall Creek’s focus on research and development and technical customer support. Now, I look forward to integrating those teams and bringing new licensing opportunities to our grower-customers so the positive momentum will continue in Mexico.”
