McVitie’s chief to head KP nuts

Andy Rush, marketing director at United Biscuits subsidiary McVitie’s, is to move across to UB’s KP Foods where he will head the nuts division.

Rush’s job will then be split in two. Jill McComas – currently production stream director for the UB group – becomes marketing director for biscuits, including the Hob Nob, Digestive, Jaffa Cake and Rich Tea brands.

Mark Hogan, who joined McVitie’s as marketing controller from Mars last year, will be marketing director for countlines. The major countline brands are Penguin, Riva and Ace.

The position of divisional controller nuts has been vacant since February, when Hugh McPherson moved over to head the ailing crisps division.

Nuts are now the only product to carry the KP branding, apart from a small range of crisps produced for pubs and clubs.

Rush has worked for UB for nine years, except for a brief spell at United Distillers. He has worked at KP before – it was Rush who commissioned the “Eat. Don’t Hula” work from Lowe Howard-Spink. As marketing director at McVitie’s he led the Penguin-Puffin legal battle against Asda.