SÃO PAULO, BRAZIL — The board of directors of JBS S.A. has elected Gilberto Tomazoni as global chief executive officer. He succeeds Jose Batista Sobrinho, who was the first president of JBS and remains a member of the company’s board of directors.

“I am very pleased that Tomazoni is my successor,” Mr. Sobrinho said. “He lives the company’s culture and has a deep knowledge of our business worldwide. As chief operating officer, he led JBS operations with great success and, from now on, will lead the company in a new phase of its development.”

Mr. Tomazoni has spent more than 35 years in the food industry, including the past year as c.o.o. of JBS. He joined the company in 2013 as global president of poultry and was named president of global operations in 2015. Prior to JBS he was with Bunge Alimentos, where he was executive director of South and Central America and vice-president. Earlier, he spent 27 years at Sadia, rising from a trainee to c.e.o.

“I am grateful for the confidence placed in me by Jose Batista Sobrinho and the board of directors,” Mr. Tomazoni said. “Together with an outstanding team of 230,000 employees around the world, I will be dedicated to consolidating JBS as a global food company, recognized for its unique business model and the quality, safety and innovation of its products and brands. My commitment is with our company’s reputation and the integrity of our relationships. And, through a relentless attention to transparency, governance and compliance I want JBS to become a global benchmark.”