{"id":3299,"date":"2026-06-22T08:05:38","date_gmt":"2026-06-22T08:05:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=3299"},"modified":"2026-06-22T08:05:38","modified_gmt":"2026-06-22T08:05:38","slug":"nestle-executive-relocates-to-mass-to-lead-ocean-spray-as-ceo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=3299","title":{"rendered":"Nestle executive relocates to Mass. to lead Ocean Spray as CEO"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n

Abigail Buckwalter is heading back to the farm.<\/span><\/p>\n

After 16 years rising through the ranks of Nestl\u00e9\u2019s nutritional supplement and pharmaceutical therapy business, Buckwalter has moved from New Jersey to Massachusetts to be the new chief executive of Lakeville-based Ocean Spray Cranberries. <\/span><\/p>\n

Read more Trump administration shuttered a criminal probe into fraudster\u2019s clemency<\/a><\/p>\n

It\u2019s a bit of a full-circle moment for the consumer products executive, who grew up in Iowa and worked summers as a kid, detasseling corn.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Now, Buckwalter rejoins the agriculture world as a seasoned business executive: While Ocean Spray is one of Massachusetts\u2019s best known brands, it\u2019s also a farming cooperative owned by around 700 growers in North America and Chile.<\/span><\/p>\n

Buckwalter starts on Monday, taking over for Tom Hayes, who retired from the job in March after five years in the role. She\u2019ll lead a 2,000-person company that generates about $2 billion in annual revenue, mostly from its juices and other fruit beverages.<\/span><\/p>\n

About one-quarter of those people work in Massachusetts, primarily at the Lakeville office or nearby facilities in the state\u2019s cranberry-growing region, along with a 40-person satellite office in Boston\u2019s Seaport.<\/span><\/p>\n

Like many farmers, cranberry growers are struggling with inflationary and real estate pressures. Buckwalter said she\u2019s looking forward to helping them navigate these challenges. Tops on her to-do list: learning and listening, by meeting with employees and farmers. She hopes to honor Ocean Spray\u2019s century of history, while also pushing it to evolve \u201cin new and relevant ways.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI feel the weight of responsibility to our board and to our growers,\u201d Buckwalter said in an interview. \u201cWe have to find ways to … make sure their prosperity continues, generation after generation.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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Buckwalter started at Nestl\u00e9 Health Science in the group\u2019s marketing division, but eventually took on larger executive tasks, moving up through jobs that took her to offices in Switzerland (Nestl\u00e9\u2019s home country) and Australia before returning to in 2021 to work at the US corporate office in New Jersey; she became the US CEO of Nestl\u00e9 Health Science in 2023, overseeing about 6,000 people. <\/span><\/p>\n

During her tenure, she worked on a variety of brands \u2014 small emerging ones to big blockbusters. Some of the health science group\u2019sbest known product lines include Boost, Meritene, Nuun, Nature\u2019s Valley, and Carnation Instant Breakfast.<\/span><\/p>\n

Now, she\u2019ll just have one brand to focus on.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt felt like the right moment for me to take my two-plus decades in consumer packaged goods and apply it to a cooperative at Ocean Spray,\u201d Buckwalter said. \u201cIt\u2019s an amazing opportunity.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

A mother of three children, Buckwalter said she\u2019s looking forward to settling into the Boston area.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m excited for my kids to go to school here,\u201d Buckwalter said. \u201cMassachusetts is world-renowned for its education and inclusiveness. I love the fact [Boston] is a world-class city but it feels approachable and inviting.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more Lexington\u2019s Ainsley Cuthbertson leads impressive display by Massachusetts athletes at New Balance Nationals Outdoor<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Abigail Buckwalter will lead a 2,000-person company that generates about $2 billion in annual revenue, mostly from its juices and other fruit beverages.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3298,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3299","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business"],"yoast_head":"\nNestle executive relocates to Mass. to lead Ocean Spray as CEO - Boston Relocation Insider<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=3299\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Nestle executive relocates to Mass. to lead Ocean Spray as CEO - 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