Chief executive's exit rocks Affco

The resignation of Affco chief executive Ross Townshend has stunned the market.

The unexpected departure of the 47-year-old from his $870,000-a-year job sparked sharemarket ripples yesterday and renewed speculation that the meat processor is facing difficulties, given that there was no mention of his leaving at Affco's annual meeting last week.

Affco chairman Sam Lewis denied that the resignation meant problems for the firm, saying it was business as usual.