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Executive Irani Pamplona Peters, Raised in Agronômica in the Alto Vale do Itajaí, Took Over Pamplona Alimentos in Santa Catarina After an Internal Journey Started at 14 and a Family Succession Cycle, Maintaining an Operation in Rio do Sul with 3,600 Employees and Billion-Dollar Revenue in 2024 Recently
Executive Irani Pamplona Peters went from a childhood without electricity in the countryside of Agronômica, in the Alto Vale do Itajaí, to leading Pamplona Alimentos in Santa Catarina, in a sector where decisions affect thousands of work routines. The biography here is not folklore, it is management context.
At 14, she was already in the family business founded by Lauro and Ana Pamplona, during a time when the structure was small and all the siblings did a bit of everything. Decades later, in Rio do Sul, the same story intersects with numbers: 3,600 jobs and revenue of R$ 2.4 billion in 2024, with a presence in Brazil and exports to over 30 countries.
Childhood Without Energy and the Discipline That Became Leadership Language
In a house in the countryside without electricity, Irani Pamplona Peters describes her childhood as simple, but marked by unity, discipline, and faith.
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The scenario of Agronômica, in the Alto Vale do Itajaí, appears as the origin of a repertoire that the executive says she carries to the decision room of Pamplona Alimentos in Santa Catarina.
She attributes to her parents the foundation of what she considers non-negotiable in the day-to-day conduct: respect and valuing people.
Her phrase is direct and serves as a key to understanding what follows: when the company grows, the demands do not disappear, they change scale.
The family memory does not explain everything, but it helps to understand why the management discourse insists on treating people as part of the outcome.
At 14 in the Family Business and Learning Within the Operation
The formal beginning of the journey occurs early: at 14, the executive was already working in the business founded by Lauro and Ana Pamplona.
At that moment, the company was still small, and the siblings’ participation was daily, from production to administrative tasks, in an environment of collaboration forced by the lack of structure.
Over time, Irani went through different areas and built a path within the operation, without apparent shortcuts.
A highlighted passage is her time in the finance department for about 16 years, a period cited as crucial for facing the presidency.
The technical training, in this case, did not come from a position, it came from the repetition of the process and from exposure to decisions that tie cost, investment, and continuity.
1991, the Death of Her Father and Dona Ana’s Presidency in a Male-Dominated Sector
In 1991, the death of Lauro Pamplona marks the family and the company and opens a delicate chapter: the succession amid mourning.
Dona Ana takes over the presidency and leads Pamplona Alimentos for nearly two decades, maintaining family values as the axis of stability, according to Irani’s account.
Irani describes her mother as an inspiration and highlights a leadership that combined sensitivity, faith, and firmness.
She also points out the symbolic weight of a woman in charge of a predominantly male sector, with a legacy that transcends organizational charts.
The message is that firmness and care can coexist, even under pressure and even when the business environment tries to reduce leadership to numbers.
The Succession in 2009 and the Responsibility Measured in 3,600 Jobs
The transition to the presidency is described as gradual and planned until, in 2009, the executive officially takes command.
The declared mission is to continue the history built by the founders without losing the essence, a typical challenge for family businesses that have become industries and need to professionalize without breaking identity.
It is at this point that Rio do Sul enters as a material address reflecting the size achieved, with the plant on the banks of BR-470 cited as a physical landmark of the pig farming empire in Santa Catarina.
Her own words set a benchmark for social dimensions: when one observes how many families depend on the company, each decision carries weight.
When 3,600 jobs are at stake, the mistake ceases to be merely internal and has cascading effects on the surrounding community.
Pamplona Alimentos Between Brazil and Exports and What the Numbers Hide
The cited indicators help to take the story out of the emotional field and ground it: Pamplona Alimentos has a presence throughout Brazil, exports to over 30 countries, and closed 2024 with revenue of R$ 2.4 billion, an increase of 8.26% compared to the previous year.
For an executive, this combination creates a type of pressure that does not appear in the institutional photo: production scale, deadlines, standardization, and reputational risk.
At the same time, Irani states that financial results are important, but not the center of decision-making, because what matters is the impact on people’s lives.
The statement is both political and practical: she tries to tie numbers and culture together, without denying that expansion requires innovation and new markets.
Between billions and everyday life, management is made of small choices repeated many times and a narrative that needs to convince both inside and outside the company.
In the end, the executive who started at 14 in a small structure in Agronômica, in the Alto Vale do Itajaí, leads Pamplona Alimentos in Santa Catarina with the memory of a house without electricity and with goals that today are measured in Rio do Sul by jobs and revenue.
The story draws attention because it touches on a real dilemma: growing without losing essence.
If you have ever worked in a family business or know someone who started early, at what point does the origin become an advantage, and when does it become a burden? And looking at Santa Catarina and Rio do Sul, what type of leadership do you consider fairer in large businesses: the one that demands results at any cost or the one that places respect as a rule?
Trabalhei 39 anos nesta renomada Empresa. Pessoas humildes e humanas que transformaram uma humilde carroça usada como meio de locomoção para fazer suas vendas de bovinos e suínos pelo seu pai homem de visão empreendedora e trazendo com ele seus filhos ao crescimento de um humilde açougue ao império “pamplona alimentos S/A. Parabéns D.Irani, Diretoria e todo o Conselho.