Veetee USA has named Kevin Stitt as its US Executive, a move that underscores the company's ambition to expand its presence in the American ready-rice market. Stitt, whose career includes senior roles at Flora Food Group, BodyArmor, Coca-Cola, and Jack Link's, will lead the company's retail expansion efforts, with a particular focus on securing shelf space at Walmart and Publix. The appointment comes as Veetee USA prepares to transition to full localized production at its Selma, North Carolina facility, targeted for February 2028.
Stitt's background is steeped in managing complex retail relationships and scaling distribution across major consumer packaged goods categories. At Flora Food Group, he navigated the plant-based foods sector, while his tenure at BodyArmor and Coca-Cola involved competing in the highly competitive beverage aisle. This experience is expected to be instrumental as Veetee USA seeks to differentiate its product in a category dominated by established players.
Central to Veetee's retail pitch is its 10-Stage Steam Filtration cooking process, which employs open steam cooking rather than the retort pouch method commonly used in the ready-rice industry. Retort processing, which seals and heat-treats the product in its final packaging, can compromise texture and flavor. In contrast, Veetee's approach cooks the rice before packaging, preserving the grain's natural characteristics. The product is also packaged in transparent clear trays ranging from 9.9oz to 10.6oz, allowing consumers to see the rice before purchase. This visual transparency is a deliberate departure from opaque or foil-based packaging, designed to communicate quality at a glance in fast-paced retail environments like Walmart and Publix.
The Selma manufacturing hub is a cornerstone of Veetee USA's US strategy. By producing domestically, the company aims to gain greater control over lead times, logistics costs, and responsiveness to retailer replenishment demands. Selma's location in Johnston County, eastern North Carolina, offers proximity to distribution infrastructure serving the Southeast and mid-Atlantic, regions where Publix has a dense footprint and Walmart operates numerous supercenters.
Stitt's immediate focus will be advancing conversations with Walmart and Publix buyers, a process that requires demonstrating supply chain readiness alongside product performance. His track record of managing national distribution at volume, including compliance with large-format retailers' requirements, is considered key to his role. As Veetee USA moves toward its 2028 production milestone, the company is positioning itself to leverage its differentiated cooking process, transparent packaging, and domestic manufacturing as competitive levers in the US ready-rice market.
