The board of directors of Corn Products International Inc. has appointed Ilene Gordon chairman, president, and chief executive officer, effective May 4, succeeding Samuel C. Scott III who--consistent with company policy—is stepping down by age 65, and is retiring.

After 35 years with the company, Scott announced in January 2008 his intention to retire. He has served as chairman and chief executive officer of the company since February 2001 and president since 1997.

"We thank Sam for his years of leadership and dedicated service to Corn Products," said board member, William S. Norman. "During Sam's tenure as CEO, the company greatly expanded its international operations, made several key acquisitions, and surpassed $3.9 billion in net sales.

"Upon learning of his intention to retire, the board refined a robust succession plan that included key criteria for the new CEO," Norman continued. “We then focused on a thorough and deliberative search for his successor. We selected Ilene Gordon because of her strong leadership skills, international experience, and knowledge of commodity businesses and the food and beverage industry. We are confident this will be an orderly, thorough, and thoughtful transition."

Gordon, 55, has more than 30 years of senior-level, international management experience, and a proven track record as a leader.

Since 2007, she has been president and CEO, Rio Tinto's Alcan Packaging, where she is responsible for leading a $6.5 billion global packaging business with 130 factories in 30 countries servicing the food, beauty, and pharmaceutical industries, among others. From 2004 to 2006, she was president of Alcan Food Packaging Americas, where she managed a business with $1.4 billion in sales and 5000 employees in six countries.

Prior to Alcan's acquisition of Pechiney in 2003, Gordon served in positions of increasing responsibility with Pechiney and Tenneco for more than 20 years, and began her career as a strategy consultant at the Boston Consulting Group.

A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Massachusetts Institute of Technology, with a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics, Gordon also earned a Master of Science degree in management from MIT's Sloan School of Management. She is a director of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., chairing its governance committee, and a director of United Stationers, serving on its human resources and governance committees.

In accepting her new position, Gordon said, "Corn Products International has strong operations worldwide, enjoys the support of flagship customers, and has talented and committed employees in markets around the world. I look forward to building on its strong market positions and leading it forward in the years ahead."

Reflecting on his years at Corn Products International, Scott said, "Since becoming a public company 11 years ago, by focusing on our core values and pursuing our Pathways strategy, which we introduced in 2003, Corn Products has exceeded each of the five key financial targets we promised our stakeholders."

"Corn Products International has been able to navigate the challenging global marketplace with discipline and much success to date. 2008 was an exceptional year as the company continued to demonstrate that it can perform well in a climate of unprecedented volatility. Gordon and the rest of the management team have managed through challenging times before at their respective organizations, and are prepared to deal with the global recession of 2009," he added.

Corn Products International is one of the world's largest corn refiners and a major supplier of high-quality food ingredients and industrial products derived from the wet milling and processing of corn and other starch-based materials. Headquartered in Westchester, Illinois, the company is a leading worldwide producer of dextrose and a major regional supplier of starch, high fructose corn syrup, and glucose. In 2008, the company reported record net sales and diluted earnings per share of $3.94 billion and $3.52, respectively. The company has operations in 15 countries at 34 plants, including wholly owned businesses, affiliates, and alliances. For more information, visit www.cornproducts.com.