About Us
Sugaronline Team
Executive Team
John Kinder
Chairman
John is the Founder and Director of Rivertrade Limited, specialised in providing seed, early stage capital and funding to private businesses across a wide variety of sectors in the UK and internationally. He was Chairman and a significant shareholder of the largest entertainment insurance broker which was sold to integro in 2015, backed the construction of the Jawamanis Sugar refinery in Indonesia while chairing its board, and also backed from an early stage a leading carbon credit business set up as part of the drive to reduce carbon emissions under the UN Kyoto protocol.
John is actively involved in charities devoted to using sport for social development as a trustee of the Eric Evans Trust and Tennis For Free as well as a founding backer of the Made by Sport initiative. He is a board member of the UK-based Centre for Social Justice, a pre-eminent think tank helping to influence social welfare policy in the UK.
Prior to his current activities, John was a Director of E D and F Man, a leading commodity and fund management business. From 1987-1999, he held the position of global Managing Director of the sugar division with more than 1,800 staff in 40 offices and facilities. He was also a member of the senior management team that saw Man Group float on the London Stock Exchange.
In 2004, John teamed up with others to develop a private villa estate called Samujana on the well-known resort island of Ko Samui in Thailand. Initially intended to be a small bolt hole for a group of friends and their families with links to the Asian hubs of Hong Kong, Singapore and Bangkok, Samujana has grown to be one of the most exclusive high-end estates in the region, with 27 substantial pool villas perched on a hillside overlooking the ocean. Fifteen years after the first villa was completed, the estate is still overseen by an owners’ group, chaired by John. His other hospitality interests include the Fox Club, a boutique club and residence in Mayfair, London.
Brian Nolk
Managing Director
Brian Nolk brings three decades of experience in managing global business intelligence firms to Sugaronline. Originally from Toronto, Brian worked in Sydney, Hong Kong, Geneva, New York and Dubai before moving to London. Having led such businesses as DeHavilland, Victoria Street Capital, FC Business Intelligence, Worldwide Business Research, and Metal Bulletin, he joined Sugaronline in August 2019.
Drawing on his extensive global commodity business and events management experience Brian is working with the team and all our collaborators to further strengthen Sugaronline, build strong partnerships across the industry and improve its service to the global industry.
Analysts & Editorial
Julian Price
Analyst – Europe
Julian Price BSc (Agriculture) PG Dip (Marketing) began his career in sugar more than 30 years ago at ED&F Man, initially as a market analyst, and as from 1994 as a trader and broker. He is recognized to possess wide experience and deep knowledge at the heart of the trade between African, Caribbean, Pacific and Least Developed Countries and the European Union. In 2018, he launched as an independent consultant, including advising on trade policy matters with a focus on formulating concrete and realistic strategies to address resilience in the trade and marketing of sugar by means of reliable, independent market intelligence as to trade flow analysis, import parity analysis, price dynamics, methodology, key documentary requirements and trade support. Julian was elected eight years in a row as President of the European Sugar Traders’ Association “ASSUC”.
Roger Bradshaw
Analyst – China, East Asia & Oceania
Roger started in sugar in 1977 on the Paris futures market and later joined ED&F Man as a director of ED&F Man (Far East), based in Hong Kong. During his career as a sugar trader, he initiated a number of groundbreaking strategies including the first joint trading operation for futures and physical sugar with Cofco, as well as structured trading strategies in Thailand and Cuba which became templates for the future.
In 1990, Roger joined Rabobank Hong Kong as co head of trade and commodity finance North Asia, and later head of Agri project finance Asia which included a number of investments in the regional sugar industry as well as Africa, and the creation of an agency line between Rabobank and the International Finance Corporation of the Worlrd Bank. Subsequently he worked as senior banker, global sugar and sweeteners for Rabobank until he left Rabobank in 2008, when he then worked as a senior advisor for Kenana Sugar, Mitr Phol and Bunge. Recent work has included assessment of a greenfield sugar project in Tanzania, and participating in the development of a National Sugar Policy for a major African importer seeking to develop its industry.
Ritesh Kumar Singh
Editor, India
Ritesh is an economist with more than two decades of work experience both in government as well as private sector organisations. He’ll be covering major developments related to India’s sugar and ethanol sector, and how that Indian market affects world markets; taking over seamlessely from his former colleague Prerna Sharma Singh.
Judy Ganes
Analyst – North America
Judith Ganes provides subscription-based research services to food and agricultural industries, acts as an advisor on commodity pricing, as well as conducts customized educational training courses and workshops worldwide on risk management principles and techniques through the value chain. Judy is a noted expert instructor on futures and options hedging.
Prior to starting J. Ganes Consulting in 2001, she spent nearly two decades on Wall Street working for major brokerage houses as a Senior Commodities Analyst for their many institutional and retail clients specializing in sugar, coffee, cocoa, cotton and orange juice.
Nick Kwolek
Analyst – East Africa
Nick Kwolek is the founder of Kwolco, an agri-trade consultancy and research business that was started in Nairobi, Kenya in 2018. In the summer of 2018, Nick decided to leave the sugar trade after 13 years to set up his own business catering to the medium- and large-scale commodities trade houses, international agencies, banks and agricultural producers in East and Southern Africa.
Nick is very passionate about the African continent and sees the massive current and future potential that it has. He has had the fortune to travel to almost all of the countries in Eastern and Southern Africa and has a good understanding of how the sugar trade works on that side of the continent. Nick, when not in the office, can usually be found roaming the plains of Africa with his family in his trusty Landrover Defender.
Anna Flávia Rochas
Editor, Americas
Anna Flávia Rochas is a Brazilian media professional based in Orlando, Florida with more than eight years of writing and editing experience for real-time news wires including Reuters, magazines and digital news outlets in Brazil and the United States. Her specialities include includes Brazilian business and economic trends, renewable energy, utility companies, modern power systems, public stock markets, government regulatory agencies, and environmental impact of new infrastructure. She covers the Latin American markets for Sugaronline and is fluent in Portuguese, English and Spanish.
Sales
Alessandra Rosete
Sales Consultant
Alessandra Rosete is a Sales Associate with Sugaronline, based in Lisbon. An experienced agricultural analyst with a strong background in the sugar and ethanol industry Ale is expert in sugar research, supply and demand forecasts, and in writing news and analysis reports with extensive experience in the logistics, brokerage, futures departments for major sugar/ethanol global players.
She was also involved for years in the assessment of physical sugar and ethanol prices in Brazil for domestic and export markets. Ale is passionate and committed to delivering excellent and accurate information for clients.
Yuxin LaiZhang
Sales Consultant
Yuxin brings to Sugaronline a fresh energy and approach in finding the right sales solutions for organisations in the sugar sectors. With a background in forex markets he understands the complex forces at work in shaping global business developments. Yuxin is fluent in English and Chinese as well as functional in Japanese and Korean.
Operations
Heather Neal
Finance Assistant
Heather supports Brian at Sugaronline, in her role managing the accounts payable and receivable. She also provides member support, helping to ensure that members are able to renew on time and assists with general financial issues.
Heather started with sugaronline in April 2022 and is enjoying being part of the team.
Heather has working in accounts for 17 years in various different sectors from Print to Football.
When not working, she enjoys travelling with her family. Playing Netball in a local team and running around after her toddler.
Meghan Sapp
Senior Advisor
Meghan Sapp is a journalist and analyst based in Navarra, Spain with more than 20 years of writing and editing experience including Dow Jones, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Board of Trade, Biofuels Digest, BioFPR, ICIS Chemical News, Women’s eNews and many others. Her specialty is agriculture with a focus on sugar, soft commodities and biofuels. Between 2005 and 2022, she was responsible for all of Sugaronline’s news coverage, weekly analysis and managing the international team of correspondents. She continues to support Sugaronline independently for in-person and other events from time to time.
