Chiquita Brands Appoints New CFO

Chiquita Brands International Inc. named James B. Riley chief financial officer to succeed Warren Ligan, who left the world’s top banana producer in September. Riley, 49, had been CFO at Elliott Co., a maker of turbines and other equipment for the oil and natural gas industry, in 1999, Cincinnati-based Chiquita said. Before that, he was CFO and a founding director of Republic Engineered Steels Inc. Chiquita has been losing money for three years, a situation it blames in part on European trade restrictions that reduced banana prices. The company’s shares have fallen more than 60% in the last year. The company said this month that it can’t repay $87 million it owes bondholders in March and proposed swapping bonds for shares. Chiquita also filed a $525-million lawsuit against the European Union’s ruling body for blocking imports of its bananas. The company’s shares closed up 5 cents at $1.76 on the NYSE.