ANKENY, Iowa, October 19, 2026 – Albaugh today announced that César Rojas, Region President, Brazil, will retire effective April 30, 2027, and that Rafael Ughini Villarroel will assume the position of Region President, Brazil, effective January 1, 2027.
César caps an accomplished career spanning more than 30 years in the crop protection industry. Since joining Albaugh in 2016 as President of Argentina, and subsequently leading operations in Brazil, he has played a pivotal role in expanding Albaugh's presence throughout South America. Under his leadership, Albaugh strengthened its commercial position, broadened its product portfolio, expanded customer relationships, and established itself as a recognized leader in post-patent crop protection solutions across the region and worldwide through his participation in the global executive leadership team.
Succeeding César is Rafael Ughini Villarroel, a highly respected agribusiness executive with more than 25 years of leadership experience. Rafael most recently served as Chief Operating Officer of Agrex do Brasil and previously held senior executive positions with Lavoro, Bayer, Rural Brasil, and Oceana Minerals. Throughout his career, he has led commercial, operational, supply chain, strategic planning, and business transformation initiatives across Latin America and international markets.
A chemical engineer by training, Rafael holds graduate business qualifications from Fundação Getúlio Vargas and Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management. His career includes leadership assignments in Brazil, Germany, and Central America, providing broad experience across the agricultural value chain.
"César leaves an enduring legacy at Albaugh," said Kurt Pedersen Kaalund, Group CEO. "Under his leadership, our businesses in Argentina and Brazil strengthened their market positions, expanded customer relationships, and delivered consistent growth. We are deeply grateful for his dedication and leadership.
“Now we welcome Rafael, a highly respected agribusiness executive with extensive leadership experience across Latin America and global agricultural markets," said Kaalund. "His strategic vision, customer focus, and operational expertise will help accelerate Albaugh's continued growth in Brazil."
Albaugh remains committed to providing growers throughout Brazil and globally with innovative, high-quality crop protection solutions while continuing to strengthen relationships with customers, distributors, business partners, and employees throughout the region.
