Manufacturing | Food & Beverage
Executive director
Kerry Group | Beloit
Gerry Behan has worked for over 35 years for Kerry Group, an Ireland-based international food corporation with operations in Beloit. Behan has held various senior financial and business management roles in the Americas region, including chief operating officer and regional chief executive officer. He was appointed president and chief executive officer of Kerry’s Global Taste & Nutrition business in 2011, overseeing the global expansion of the company’s largest operating division.
He has been an executive director on the board since 2008. In 2021, he served as acting president and CEO of Kerry’s North America operations while the company searched for a new leader.
Kerry has over 22,000 staff and 150 innovation and manufacturing centers across 30 countries. In 2021, the company completed a $125 million expansion of its Georgia manufacturing facility, the company’s largest ever capital expenditure investment. At the time of the announcement, Behan said the facility will be “one of the most advanced and modern food manufacturing facilities in the world.”
Locally, Behan serves as vice president of Beloit 200, a group of local business leaders led by Diane Hendricks. The group created nonprofit organization Kids First Beloit, which launched The Lincoln Academy, a new public charter school in the city.