AgriFORCE Growing Systems Ltd. announced the appointments of current board members David Welch and John Meekison as Co-Chairs of the Board of Directors. Additionally, Richard Wong, who currently serves as Chief Financial Officer, has also been appointed Interim Chief Executive Officer, replacing Ingo Mueller, who will remain on the board of directors.
Mr. Welch, who has served as a member of the board since 2019, is the founding partner at D|R Enso Law, L.L.P., a law firm in Los Angeles, California. He has a broad base of experience representing clients in areas of litigation, corporate governance and financing, intellectual property and regulatory advisement, and defense. Mr. Welch also focuses on complex commercial transactions and finance. Mr. Welch obtained his Juris Doctorate degree from Loyola Law School and received his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from California State University, Fullerton. He is a member of the Los Angeles County and American Bar Associations.
Mr. Meekison, who has served as a member of the board since 2019, has spent the last 15 years serving in a variety of executive management and C.F.O. roles with both private and public companies, currently as the C.F.O. and Director of Exro Technologies Inc., a technology company that creates energy management systems; and C.F.O. of ArcWest Exploration Inc., a mining exploration company in British Columbia. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of Telo Genomics Corp. and Adven Inc. Prior to his position at Exro Technologies Inc., Mr. Meekison spent 15 years in corporate finance with a focus on raising equity capital for North American technology companies, including nine years at Haywood Securities Inc. Mr. Meekison received his Bachelor of Arts from the University of British Columbia and is a Chartered Professional Accountant, Professional Logistician, and Certified Investment Manager.
Mr. Wong has over 25 years of experience in both start-up and public companies in the consumer goods, fertilizer, manufacturing, and forest industries, where he helped propel revenue growth and led business turnarounds. Prior to joining the Company in 2018, he was a partner in First Choice Capital Advisors from 2008-2016 and a partner in Lighthouse Advisors Ltd. from 2016-2018. Mr. Wong has also served as the C.F.O. of Emerald Harvest Co., Dan-D Foods, Ltd., and was the Director of Finance and C.F.O. of SUGOI Performance Apparel and had served positions at Canfor, Canadian Pacific & other Fortune 1000 companies. Mr. Wong is a Chartered Professional Accountant and has been a member since 1999. Mr. Wong has a Diploma in Technology and Financial Management from the British Columbia Institute of Technology.
Mr. Wong stated, “We are reallocating resources to focus on commercialization and organic growth of the Company’s three key assets: Un(Think) Foods, a brand based on our patented process to naturally convert grains and pulses; AgriFORCE-RCS Hydroxyl generating devices for eliminating pathogens and volatile organic compounds (V.O.C.s) in food manufacturing and controlled environment agriculture; and the Company’s patented GrowHouse structures and automated growing systems. Each of these technologies targets distinct, multi-billion-dollar addressable markets, and we have a talented team to bring these innovative products and technologies to market in the most timely and cost-efficient manner possible, and we are focused on driving organic growth, positive cash flow, and maximizing returns for our shareholders.”