Ardent Mills has announced that Manoj Rana has joined the company as its vice president of corporate and business development. In this newly created role, Manoj will partner with leaders across the industry to identify future business ventures that support Ardent Mills’ long-term growth strategy.   

“Ardent Mills’ mission is to enhance the quality of life and standard of health—a purpose we serve by providing nutritious and innovative grain-based solutions to communities everywhere,” said Dan Dye, chief executive officer at Ardent Mills. “As the flour milling business evolves and the growth of plant-based ingredients continues to play a critical role in the food industry, we are confident Manoj has the skills and expertise to help our business explore its long-term potential so we can continue to transform how the world is nourished." 

In his role, Rana will work to align priorities, projects, and strategic initiatives to enable growth for Ardent Mills and its customers with an emphasis on unlocking opportunities within the emerging nutrition space. He will report to Angie Goldberg, chief growth officer at Ardent Mills.  

“Ardent Mills is focused on driving growth for our customers, and Manoj’s extensive leadership experience in the corporate development space will be an integral part of Ardent Mills’ long-term strategy to cultivate the future of alternative grains,” said Angie Goldberg, chief growth officer at Ardent Mills. “We are excited to welcome Manoj to the Ardent Mills community.” 

Rana is a seasoned mergers and acquisitions and corporate development leader with nearly 15 years of global experience. In his last role at Tyson Foods, he led several corporate development initiatives that advanced key strategic priorities. Prior to joining Tyson Foods, Manoj was with Deutsche Bank Consumer Investment banking group where he advised corporate clients predominantly in the food sector. 

“As plant-based food trends continue to grow, this is a very exciting time to join Ardent Mills. The company has tremendous history in this space and strong momentum following several significant and recent investments—from multiple acquisitions in alternative grains like quinoa, chickpea, and gluten-free, to investments in people, technology, and infrastructure,” said Manoj Rana, vice president of corporate and business development at Ardent Mills. “Ardent Mills is truly at the forefront of emerging nutrition, and I look forward to supporting this continued growth for years to come.”