DULUTH, Ga., Jan. 29, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health USA Inc. announced today the appointment of Everett Hoekstra as its president.

Hoekstra succeeds Paul Fonteyne, who retired after 15 years with Boehringer Ingelheim. He takes the helm two years after Boehringer Ingelheim's animal-health business acquired Merial from Sanofi.

Together with Timothy Bettington, who leads the company's U.S. commercial operations, Hoekstra will oversee the company's largest animal health market and help drive continued growth and innovation in an industry undergoing significant change due to consolidation and technological advances.

Hoekstra has held a variety of leadership roles since joining Boehringer Ingelheim in 1997, mainly in finance at the company's human pharmaceutical business. He also co-led the launch of Boehringer Ingelheim's global diabetes alliance with Eli Lilly and Company and most recently served as chief financial officer of the U.S. animal health business.

A native of Iowa, Hoekstra spent 12 years early in his career as co-owner and business manager for a veterinary group in the Midwest. As part of that group, he helped build several successful veterinary agriculture businesses, including a swine biologics business (today part of Boehringer Ingelheim), a veterinary distribution company (today part of Animal Health International of the Patterson group of companies), and a bovine reproductive technology services company (Trans Ova Genetics).

"Those experiences gave me a deep appreciation of the invaluable contributions veterinarians make every day," Hoekstra said. "Preventing disease in pets and livestock – and keeping animals healthy – contributes to human health and wellbeing.  I look forward to helping advance Boehringer Ingelheim's legacy as a leader, good steward and key innovator in the animal health industry."

Boehringer Ingelheim's animal-health business aspires to create the future of animal wellbeing through a focus on preventive healthcare. It develops vaccines, parasiticides and pharmaceuticals, driven by a belief that animals and people share an unbreakable bond. The company has pioneered a number of the most widely known products for dogs and cats as well as cattle, swine, poultry and horses, including FRONTLINE®, HEARTGARD®, NEXGARD®, GASTROGARD®, INGELVAC®, IVOMEC® and VAXXITEK®.

The company employs more than 3,000 people in the United States, including at its U.S. headquarters in Duluth, Ga., a manufacturing and R&D site in St. Joseph, Mo., an R&D and manufacturing site in Athens, Ga., and at manufacturing sites in Gainesville, Ga, and Barceloneta, Puerto Rico. It also has a presence in U.S. communities that include North Brunswick, N.J.; Worthington, Minn. and Ames, Iowa.

About Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health Business Unit
Boehringer Ingelheim is the second largest animal health business in the world. We are committed to creating animal wellbeing through our large portfolio of advanced, preventive healthcare products and services. With net sales in 2017 of 3.9 billion euros ($4.4 billion) and around 10,000 employees worldwide, we are present in more than 150 markets. For more information, visit https://www.boehringer-ingelheim.us/animal-health/who-we-are.

About Boehringer Ingelheim
Boehringer Ingelheim is one of the world's top 20 pharmaceutical companies. Headquartered in Ingelheim, Germany, the company operates globally with approximately 50,000 employees. Since its founding in 1885, the company has remained family-owned and today creates value through innovation in three business areas: human pharmaceuticals, animal health and biopharmaceutical contract manufacturing. Boehringer Ingelheim is committed to improving lives and providing valuable services and support to patients and their families.  In 2017, Boehringer Ingelheim achieved net sales of about 18.1 billion euros ($20.4 billion). R&D expenditure corresponds to approximately three billion euros ($3.4 billion), or 17.0 percent of its net sales.

More information about Boehringer Ingelheim can be found on www.boehringer-ingelheim.com or in the company's annual report at http://annualreport.boehringer-ingelheim.com.

SOURCE Boehringer Ingelheim

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