Divert co-founder and COO Nick Whitman is stepping back from his C-suite role, the company announced Wednesday. Whitman will transition to a role on Divert’s board of directors and remain a strategic advisor.

A spokesperson for the company said it would share new details about Whitman’s replacement for the COO role in the coming weeks. 

“Nick has been an extraordinary co-founder and partner,” Ryan Begin, CEO and co-founder of Divert, said in a statement. “I am profoundly grateful for Nick’s strategic insights, steadfast leadership, creativity, and partnership in establishing an exceptional team.”

Whitman has been involved with the company’s day-to-day operations for nearly 18 years. The company was founded in 2007 in Massachusetts and partners with a variety of grocers and food suppliers to provide reverse logistics, optimizing food donations and food waste streams for companies like Kroger.

Since its founding, Divert has processed more than 3.2 billion pounds of unsold food, according to a release. 

The company is in the process of scaling up its first Integrated Diversion & Energy facilities, which process food waste and produce renewable natural gas via anaerobic digestion. The first two facilities are located in Turlock, California, and Longview, Washington, and the company plans to build a network of 30 locations in the coming years. 

Divert has attracted major investors in recent years as well. Private equity firm Ara Partners acquired the company in 2021 and infused it with $100 million to scale its growth. Gas pipeline and energy company Enbridge also committed $1 billion to Divert to scale its RNG capacity through a deal announced in 2023.

“I am eager to continue to support Divert’s rapid growth and leadership team as we scale our infrastructure and technologies,” Whitman said.

In addition to his role as COO, Whitman has also led finance, marketing, legal, people, IT, fundraising and strategic planning at Divert. Begin said “Divert is well-positioned to scale rapidly nationwide, and I am excited that Nick will remain on the board.”