Titan Frozen Fruit names industry veteran as new CEO

Titan Frozen Fruit has named 30-year industry veteran Tom Byrne its new president and CEO. Previous CEO Jon Larsen will serve as company chair.

Titan is a portfolio company of private equity firm Vestar Capital Partners.

Byrne has three decades of experience in fresh and frozen food manufacturing and packaging, according to a news release. Prior to joining Titan in 2023, he served as a senior vice president – division manager at Golden West Packaging Group, was president of Growers Express and held senior executive roles at Sambrailo Packaging and Peninsula Packaging.

“We’ve been impressed with Tom’s leadership at Titan and the meaningful impact he’s made during his two years at the company,” Vestar founder and CEO Dan O’Connell said in a news release. “He’s just the right person to lead Titan at this stage of its growth and development and we look forward to our ongoing partnership. We would also like to thank Jon for his long-time leadership at Titan, and we’re excited that he will continue as chairman and a major shareholder going forward.”

Founded in 2013 and based in Santa Maria, California, ingredient manufacturer and fruit processor Titan buys berries from commercial growers in California and Baja California. The company processes the berries into pack styles including aseptic and pasteurized purees, puree concentrate, thermal particulate, individual quick frozen and block quick frozen before selling them to food and beverage manufacturers, foodservice companies and retail stores.

“Titan has a world-class team, and I’m honored to lead the company as we execute on our strategic plans,” Byrne said. “With our new 136,500-square-foot, state-of-the-art processing facility and a commitment to delivering the highest quality products to our customers, Titan is well -positioned to take advantage of new opportunities.”