Foster Farms appointed Jayson Penn as its CEO, efficient instantly.
Penn succeeds Donnie Smith, who was named CEO of Foster Farms in June 2022, together with the corporate being acquired by Atlas Holdings.
Penn gives to the corporate a protracted profession within the poultry trade that started working together with his household’s poultry enterprise. He later spent almost a decade with Pilgrim’s Pleasure, the place he served in varied management roles, together with senior vice chairman of the Business Enterprise Group, govt vice chairman of gross sales and operations, president of Pilgrim’s USA, and finally, CEO of Pilgrim’s Pleasure Company.
Penn additionally had served on the board of administrators, the manager committee of the USA Poultry and Egg Export Council, the board and govt committee of the Nationwide Rooster Council and the board of administrators of The World Poultry Basis.
Penn left Pilgrim’s Pleasure in 2020, not lengthy after he was one among 10 poultry trade executives to be indicted on federal antitrust fees. After two mistrials, the case was heard a 3rd time in court docket with half as many defendants. Penn and all different suspects had been discovered not responsible after a 2022 trial.
He had been the president of John Soules Meals since October 2022, based on his LinkedIn profile.
“Foster Farms has been a family identify for almost a century, and I’m excited to proceed working to place this iconic model for success for a few years to return. We will likely be centered on serving our staff members and supporting our prospects with merchandise they’ll belief. A stable basis for good development has been set, and I’m able to get began,” stated Penn.
Restricted info regarding Smith’s departure from the firm was disclosed, however Foster Farms spokesman Ira Brill stated in an e mail, “the firm prolonged because of Donnie for his previous service.”
Smith joined Foster Farms in June 2022, popping out of retirement to take the helm of the California-based broiler and turkey producer. He had beforehand labored for Tyson Meals for 36 years, the final seven of these as CEO, with that tenure coming to an finish in December 2016.
Nonetheless, Smith was not idle throughout his retirement. He had been engaged on creating a contemporary poultry trade in Rwanda and dealing with different underdeveloped nations like Mozambique, Uganda and Haiti.
Smith was nonetheless concerned in African outreach throughout his time with Foster Farms, and he’s anticipated to proceed with these endeavors, Brill stated, including he had “no different info on his future plans.”
James Richards named chief monetary officer
On the similar time Foster Farms introduced the hiring of Penn as its CEO, it introduced that James Richards can be the corporate’s new chief monetary officer (CFO).
Richards most not too long ago labored because the president and CEO of Kodi Collective, a print and advertising and marketing providers enterprise. Earlier than becoming a member of Kodi Collective, he spent 22 years with Normal Electrical, serving throughout numerous industries in senior CFO, chief info officer, and operations transformation management roles.
Atlas Companions issued the next assertion regarding the new leaders of Foster Farms: “We’re excited to have Jayson on board to guide the transformation journey underway. Jayson and James convey rapid energy to the broader Management Staff. Jayson’s deep trade expertise and dedication to operational excellence present the best mixture to guide Foster Farms into the long run.”
