Specialty foods firm names board member

BONITA SPRINGS — Specialty foods distributor Innovative Food Holdings appointed mining industry and venture capital executive Nathaniel Klein to its board of directors.

Klein was a vice president at Hale Capital Partners, a private equity and venture capital firm, from 2008 to 2016, according to a statement. In September 2016 he co-founded North American Lithium, which owns and operates the Quebec Lithium project in La Corne, Quebec, Canada, the release adds. The company has invested more than $400 million in the lithium operations. Prior to joining HCP Klein, was an associate for Highbridge Capital Management, a multibillion-dollar fund owned by JPMorgan Chase.

“We are very excited to add Nathaniel Klein to the Board,” Innovative Food Holdings CEO Sam Klepfish says in the statement. “We believe that Nathaniel's extensive private equity background and his data driven approach towards growing companies to the next level with a focus on unlocking shareholder value, are valuable resources for the board of directors of Innovative Food Holdings. We expect he will provide significant opportunities to build additional value for all Innovative Food Holdings shareholders.”

Bonita Springs-based Innovative Food Holdings had $35.1 million in 2016 revenues.