PGG Wrightson appoints Ian Glasson as new chief executive

PGG Wrightson has hired former Gold Coin/Zuellig Agriculture head Ian Glasson to take over the Kiwi rural supplies business starting next month.

Glasson replaces Mark Dewdney, who signalled his departure in June, and has an extensive career in agricultural business including Gold Coin, where he was responsible for running a billion-dollar business including animal feed operations and farming ventures, and related Zuellig business CB Norwood Distributors, a farm machinery business in Australia and New Zealand.

"Ian brings impressive qualifications for leading an agricultural business such as PGW and we are pleased to have him join the company," chair Alan Lai said in a statement. "Ian will remain an external director of SunRice, one of the largest branded rice food companies in the world, and is looking forward to relocating to Christchurch with his family for his role at PGW."

Dewdney, a former chief at Livestock Improvement Corp, replaced George Gould in charge of Wrightson, coming in just after the rural services firm wrote off $321 million from the goodwill accrued in the 2005 merger with Pyne Gould Guinness. Since then, Wrightson has posted stable earnings despite last year's dairy price slump.

Wrightson increased annual profit 5.7 percent to $46.3 million in the June 2017 year, even as sales were weighed down by wet autumn conditions hampering the New Zealand harvest and dragging on the firm's seed and grain business.

The shares last traded at 57 cents and have gained 15 percent so far this year.