Hwang Jonghyun Officially Announces Withdrawal as Candidate
Extraordinary General Meeting Next Month to Amend Articles and Elect President
Park Jinseon to Become First "Father and Son Presidents" in the Association
Hwang Jonghyun, CEO of SPC Samlip, has withdrawn his candidacy for the next president of the Korea Food Industry Association. As a result, Park Jinseon, CEO of Sempio Foods, remains the sole candidate, effectively confirming his appointment as president.
Park Jinseon, CEO of Sempio Foods, is posing before an interview on the 12th at Sempio Heritage Space in Jung-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kang Jinhyung
According to SPC and the food industry on the 30th, CEO Hwang officially informed the association the previous day that he would not run for president. Both Park and Hwang had initially expressed their intention to run, raising the possibility of a contested election for the first time since the association's founding. However, with Hwang's withdrawal, the contested election will not take place.
Until now, the association has appointed its president through the board of directors. However, with two candidates running this year, the regular general meeting in February was unable to elect a president and postponed the process.
The association plans to hold an extraordinary general meeting on the 4th of next month to handle proposed amendments to its articles of association, including details on the method of electing the president. The amendment states that "the president shall be elected from among those recommended by the board of directors, and the procedure shall be determined by separate regulations." After amending the articles, the association plans to obtain approval from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety and complete the presidential election process by the end of next month. However, as some board members have differing opinions on the amendment, there is a possibility that the schedule may be delayed.
Born in 1950, Park Jinseon graduated from Seoul National University with a degree in electronic engineering, earned a master's degree in electronic engineering from Stanford University in the United States, and received a Ph.D. in philosophy from Ohio State University. He later served as a professor of philosophy at Villanova University before joining Sempio Foods in 1994, and has served as CEO since 1997.
If Park becomes president, he will set a record as the first "father and son presidents" in the association, following his late father, honorary chairman Park Seungbok. The late Park served as the 15th to 17th president of the association's predecessor, the Korea Food Industry Association.
An industry official commented, "He is a business leader who has transformed Sempio from a traditional fermented sauce company into a global fermentation specialist brand," adding, "He has a deep understanding of the overall food industry and a perspective that encompasses small and medium-sized enterprises as well as large corporations."
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