Christine M. Castellano is Associate General Counsel, South America and Europe, for Corn Products International, Inc. In this capacity, Ms. Castellano is responsible for the management of legal affairs throughout the Company's operations in South America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. She provides advice and counsel to the Company's officers and local management, and directs activities of internal and outside legal counsel in these regions. Specific responsibilities include mergers and acquisitions; regulatory, environmental and sustainability; contract negotiations; license agreements; global intellectual property; antitrust and fair competition; and compliance and ethics policies. A former litigator, Ms. Castellano has been involved with numerous litigation matters, including a NAFTA Chapter 11 hearing on state responsibility involving a dispute with Mexico, and complex environmental matters in jurisdictions around the world.
Ms. Castellano joined the Corn Products Division of CPC International, Inc. (the predecessor company of Corn Products International) in 1996 as Attorney, and has held positions of increasing responsibility, including Counsel, US and Canada and Associate General International Counsel, with responsibility for South America, Asia and Africa. Prior to joining Corn Products International, Ms. Castellano was an income partner in the litigation department of the law firm McDermott, Will & Emery in Chicago, with emphasis on construction, labor and employment and general commercial litigation.
She is active in the ABA International Law Section, and is Vice-Chair of the Corporate Counsel Committee of that Section and a member of the Publications Committee. She is also a member of The Conference Board's Council of Senior International Attorneys.
Ms. Castellano travels frequently to Europe, South America, and in Asia, to countries such as China, South Korea and Thailand.
Ms. Castellano holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science from the University of Colorado and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Michigan School of Law. She was admitted to the Colorado bar in 1990 and the Illinois bar in 1991.
Corn Products International is one of the world's largest corn refiners and a major supplier of high-quality food ingredients and industrial products derived from the wet milling and processing of corn and other starch-based materials. The Company, headquartered in Westchester, Ill., is a leading worldwide producer of dextrose and a major regional producer of starch, high fructose corn syrup and glucose. In 2009, Corn Products International reported net sales and diluted earnings per share of $3.67 billion and $0.54, respectively, with operations in 13 countries at 28 plants, including wholly owned businesses, affiliates and alliances.