Ronan Lennon, former managing director of Capespan UK, is poised to make a dramatic return to the South African-owned group when he takes up a new role as MD of the company's Capespan Exports division, Eurofruit has learned.
He replaces Abrie de Swardt, who had been in charge of the division since his appointment in mid-January.
Based in Cape Town, it is understood that Lennon will lead the company's South African procurement and export operations, bringing with him a huge amount of experience from a 30-year career with both Capespan and its predecessor Unifruco.
His appointment will come as a surprise to many in the trade, coming just over a year after he departed Capespan's UK subsidiary.
That decision to leave followed the UK division's enforced relocation from its base at the Port of Sheerness to a new headquarters in the former home of broadcaster ITV in Maidstone, Kent.
Since then, plans by wind turbine manufacturer Vestas to redevelop a large part of the Sheerness site have been shelved.
