WICHITA, Kan. – John Keating, who has spent his career at Cargill, is the new president of Cargill Meat Solutions Corp. Keating, who takes over as president on Aug. 1, will also retain his position as president of Cargill’s beef business. Keating will replace Ruth Kimmelshue, who will move to Cargill’s global headquarters in Minneapolis as a corporate vice president. 

John Keating, president of Cargill Meat Solutions Corp.

“Under his leadership, our beef business has achieved excellence and generated results that have differentiated it from competitors,” said Brian Sikes, a Cargill corporate vice president in Minneapolis. “His passion for the business is unrivaled.”

A native Texan, Keating earned a bachelor’s degree in business marketing from Texas Tech Univ. 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-based sales office. 

In 1991, Keating was promoted to a position in Wichita where he served in various roles before moving to Australia in 1996, subsequently becoming the general manager and assistant vice president for Cargill Beef Australia in 1998. In 2002, Keating returned to Wichita as president of the company’s food distribution business, before leading the company’s case-ready meat business in 2005, its regional beef business in 2007 and then being promoted to president of Cargill Beef in 2008.

“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,” Sikes said. “He has led our beef business through challenging times, as well as times when the business achieved record performance.”

Keating and his wife Cristy reside in the Wichita area. They have three daughters.