Cascades Inc. announced the candidacy of Mr. Alex N. Blanco as a director of the company. Chosen by the Board of Directors from among several exceptional candidates identified over the past few months, his candidacy will be submitted to shareholders at the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders to be held on May 12. Alex N. Blanco is an entrepreneurial senior executive and board member with close to 40 years of international experience across multiple industries, countries and companies.

In addition to his P&G work experiences, Mr. Blanco also served as Chief Supply Chain Officer and Executive Vice President of Ecolab, a global leader in water, hygiene and energy technologies and services that protect people and vital resources, from 2013 to 2020, where he oversaw Ecolab's global supply chain operations, including Ecolab's 98 manufacturing plants, more than 200 distribution centers, procurement and engineering. Mr. Blanco has been Director of Patterson Companies Inc. since April 2017. He also served on the board of directors of the YMCA of the Greater Twin Cities from June 2015 to May 2020.

This appointment is also part of the Board of Directors' succession planning program. The appointment of Mr. Blanco prepares for the departure of a director who will retire in 2023 after 11 years of exceptional service, Ms. Elise Pelletier.