John Keating named president of Cargill Meat Solutions

John Keating has been named president of Wichita-based Cargill Meat Solutions, effective Saturday, replacing Ruth Kimmelshue, who will move to Cargill’s global headquarters in Minneapolis as a corporate vice president.

Keating will also remain as president of Cargill’s beef business, which is based in Wichita.

Keating grew up in Texas and earned a degree in business marketing from Texas Tech University before joining Cargill as a beef production trainee at the company’s Schuyler, Neb., beef plant in 1988. Later that year, he was appointed to the company’s Atlanta sales office.

In 1991, he was promoted to a position in Wichita, serving in various roles, before moving to Australia in 1996, where he became general manager and assistant vice president for Cargill Beef Australia in 1998.

Moving back to Wichita, Keating became president of the company’s food distribution business in 2002, its case-ready meat business in 2005, its regional beef business in 2007 and Cargill Beef in 2008. As president of the beef business, he dealt with a punishing drought, a declining cattle herd and high beef prices.

“John knows the cattle and beef businesses inside out, he is respected throughout the industry and he has nurtured important relationships with our customers, suppliers, cattle producers and other key stakeholders,” Brian Sikes, Cargill corporate vice president, said in a statement.

This story was originally published July 28, 2015 at 6:19 PM with the headline "John Keating named president of Cargill Meat Solutions."