About

Clara María Mazzeo is general counsel at Simplot Argentina, the Argentine joint venture operation of the multinational food and agribusiness company Simplot. Described by one nominator as ‘a dynamic and business-oriented lawyer’, Mazzeo assumed her position at Simplot in June 2014, having previously worked for more than 10 years in law firms in Argentina, including Perez Alati, Grondona and Benites & Arntsen where she stayed for five years. Simplot Argentina was experiencing its start-up phase when Mazzeo joined, and she successfully handled a number of challenges to create the legal department from scratch. Her team provides legal support in areas such as project management and regulation, further establishes the Simplot brand in the Latin America market, and deals with difficult negotiations in unstable political and economic circumstances. In overseeing the legal department, Mazzeo has contributed substantially to the company’s growth. She helped Simplot acquire local target companies in Argentina with the aim of developing a US$100m investment. She also led the negotiation and execution of a syndicated loan with eight privately held banks as project finance. Recently, her team worked on assisting all contractual and regulatory matters related to the construction of a pre-fried potato plant in Mendoza. In addition to the deals named above, Mazzeo’s legal team has assisted in the negotiation with local and international providers for the construction of the potato production line, and has been working to reach agreements with major food group clients for Argentina and Brazil. The legal department’s new objective is to set up a compliance programme for the region with Mazzeo’s appointment as compliance officer. This will ‘open a new window and direction in my career and the company’s path, accompanying our country’s new challenges to meet international standards’, she says.