Former Coca-Cola and Danone manager takes over from owner at the helm of Romanian dairy maker Albalact

Stephane Batoux, who has been running the local operations of Coca-Cola HBC for the last two years, is the new general manager of Albalact, the largest Romanian-owned dairy company, Albalact has announced. Batoux thus makes a comeback to the dairy industry. Prior to Coca-Cola, he led Danone Romania and then Danone in the region for three years. At Albalact, Batoux takes over from Raul Ciurtin, main shareholder, who is also the president of the board, and who served as general manager in the last four years. Batoux, 49, holds an MBA from École Superieure de Commerce. Albalact’s turnover stood at EUR 95.8 million in 2013, a growth of 23 percent on the previous year. The company is listed on the Rasdaq platform of the Bucharest Stock Exchange. Ciurtin controls 42.5 percent of Albalact via two Cyprus companies. The company, best known for its brand Zuzu, invested EUR 8 million in its expanding its production at Oiejdea in Alba county. editor@romania-insider.com