December 18/Florham Park, N.J./Business Wire -- Ciao Bella named natural food industry veteran Carlos Canals as chief executive officer of the company.

“I am thrilled to join the Ciao Bella family as the brand caps off an exciting year full of innovative new products and extensive retail expansion,” said Canals. “I look forward to continuing that success in 2013 by driving new initiatives that allow our consumers to enjoy the Ciao Bella brand in fresh and unexpected ways.”

Canals joins Ciao Bella following his tenure as president of Boston-based UNREAL Brands, a candy company committed to making products free of artificial colors, flavors, corn syrup, GMOs and preservatives. Prior to that, Canals served as president and CEO of Tribe Mediterranean Foods after spending three years as president and CEO of Kashi in La Jolla, Calif. Previously, he held various positions in marketing, general management and strategic planning with the Kellogg Company.