McCormick CEO to succeed Wilson as chair

Alan D. Wilson, McCormick & Co.’s executive chairman of the board, will step down Jan. 31, the Sparks-based spice and flavorings company announced Wednesday. He’ll be succeeded as chairman by President and CEO Lawrence E. Kurzius, who assumed the CEO post from Wilson earlier this year. McCormick’s board chair for eight years, Wilson will continue to serve as a director and senior adviser for the company. “Transitioning the role of Chairman of the Board for McCormick is consistent with the Board’s succession plan at the executive level and is also consistent with my personal plans,” Wilson said in a statement. Kurzius joined McCormick in 2007 when it acquired Zatarain’s, where he had been CEO. McCormick also announced that Gordon M. Stetz, an executive vice president who is retiring Dec. 31, will step down from the board. transition was disclosed in a layoff notice Kenco filed with state this month. Tennessee-based Kenco said in the notice that it plans to lay off115 workers at the 521Chelsea Road warehouse by Jan. 22, but that almost all of them would receive employment offers from Ryder. Most employers are required by federal law to file so-called WARN notices with states in advance of major layoffs. “This is simply a transfer in warehousing/ logistics service from one provider (Kenco) to another,” said Kenco spokesman Bill Fahrenwald of James Street Associates in a statement. Ryder, headquartered in Miami, could not be reached for comment Wednesday. Electrolux is a Swedish home appliance manufacturer best known for its vacuum cleaners. the Food and Drug Administration clears the way for Lupin to begin marketing the drug. Earlier in November, Lupin launched a generic drug to treat the symptoms of menopause. The company’s generic version of Ortho-Cyclen, birth control pills by Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc., also received approval in November.