Pilgrim's Pride Corp. announced that its board of directors has appointed William W. Lovette as president and chief executive officer of the company, effective January 3, 2011. Lovette succeeds Don Jackson, who is resigning from the company effective January 2, 2011, in order to assume the position of president and CEO of JBS USA, which is majority owner of Pilgrim's. Lovette will report directly to Jackson, who will continue to serve on Pilgrim's board of directors. In his new role, Jackson will continue reporting to Wesley M. Batista, who will remain as chairman of Pilgrim's and JBS USA Holdings Inc.

Lovette, 50, brings more than 27 years of industry leadership experience to Pilgrim's. Since 2008, he has served as president and COO of Case Foods Inc. Before joining Case, Lovette spent 25 years with Tyson Foods in various roles in senior management, including president of its International Business Unit, president of its Foodservice Business Unit and senior group vice president of Poultry and Prepared Foods. While at Tyson Foods, he served on the boards of Tyson de Mexico, Cobb-Vantress Inc. and EFS Network Inc.

"Bill is exceptionally qualified to lead Pilgrim's and our 41,000 employees to even greater success in the years ahead," said Jackson. "He brings a tremendous breadth of industry experience and a proven track record of success to this role. He has a deep knowledge of the poultry business and the market environment, and we believe that he will lead Pilgrim's to continued growth and profitability."

Source: Pilgrim’s Pride Corp.

South Korean investors eye North Dakota for beef plant

Korean investors and North Dakota cattle ranchers plan a beef plant in North Dakota that could process about 1,200 animals each day. The Kim and Price Corp. plant would export about 60% of its beef to South Korea and sell the rest in the U.S., according to AP reports.

Spokesman Roger Hoyum says North Dakota Beef Exports already has accepted letters of intent for nearly 450,000 animals from North Dakota and surrounding states. Developers are considering several sites, including in the Bismarck-Mandan and Jamestown areas. They hope to have the plant operating by early 2012, employing about 500 people.

Source: Associated Press

Tyson introduces new chicken wings

Foodservice operators can capitalize on wing lovers’ cravings for crispy, juicy, freshly-sauced wings with new Tyson Signature Ready Bone-in chicken wings and Tyson Red Label Boneless chicken wings.

“Wings are more popular than ever — evidenced by the growth experienced by wing houses across America. Consumers have told us, there’s nothing like a wing that’s ‘crispy, juicy and sauced just right’,” said Rodger Starnes, vice president of foodservice marketing and customer development, Tyson Foods Inc. “We offer a wide range of base wing options — including bone-in and boneless, fully cooked and ready-to-cook — to make it simple for operators to offer their customers the perfect wing experience regardless of their operational constraints.”

Tyson Signature Ready Bone-in Wings provide operators with the chance to customize by freshly tossing wings in sauce. Wings come in uncooked and fully cooked options in varieties that can go straight from the freezer to the fryer or high-heat oven.

Tyson Red Label Boneless Wings deliver the best boneless wing attributes, based on extensive consumer insight and sales data.

Source: Tyson Foods Inc.

AMI Partners with USDA to Promote MyPyramid Food Guidance System

The American Meat Institute (AMI) announced it has entered into a partnership with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) “Partnering with MyPyramid” program. The MyPyramid Food Guidance System is a network of nutrition education tools that puts the Dietary Guidelines for Americans into practice by providing personalized information on foods and dietary patterns.

AMI has long supported the MyPyramid system and uses its nutritional education tools and the Dietary Guidelines’ recommendation of consuming 5 to 7 ounces of meat per day as part of a healthy, balanced diet as a focal point in many of the Institute’s consumer education materials.

Meat and poultry are some the most nutrient dense foods available, are excellent sources of complete protein, iron and zinc and maintain an excellent nutrition per calorie ratio. Complete proteins provide all of the essential amino acids necessary for growth and good overall health.

“We are proud to join with USDA in this partnership,” said James H. Hodges, AMI executive vice president. “The health of our customers is the driving force in the production of meat and poultry products, not only with respect to improving the safety of meat and poultry products, but also in offering diverse nutritional products to consumers so they can make an educated decision in choosing the food that best fits their personal lifestyle and family needs.”

Currently, AMI’s MeatPoultryNutrition.org provides links to many of the MyPyramid tools as a step to encourage a healthy lifestyle, including sections about proper portion sizes, the benefits of protein in the diet and information about achieving a healthy body weight. The site also features a “MyPyramid for Kids” section that offers parents a guide to healthier foods and physical activity choices for kids. Additionally, three of AMI’s consumer education videos, part of its “Ask the Meat Scientist” YouTube series, focus on what it means to be a “lean” cut of meat, proper meat and poultry portion sizes and the role of sodium in meat products.

Hodges said, “AMI will utilize this partnership and continue to voice its support for the premise that a well-balanced diet, proper portion sizes and exercise are keys to overall good health.”

Source: AMI

W. Milton Hendrixson inducted into North Carolina Poultry Federation's Hall of Fame

W. Milton Hendrixson of Goldsboro Milling Co. is one of two individuals to be inducted into the North Carolina Poultry Federation’s (NCPF) Hall of Fame this year. Hendrixson was presented the award at the 2010 Hall of Fame Awards Ceremony and Luncheon November 4 at the NC State University Club.

“Milton is an intelligent, dedicated and caring man who is truly invested in the growth and improvement of the poultry industry,” said Walter Pelletier, president of Goldsboro Milling Company. “Goldsboro Milling is extremely proud and honored to have such a hardworking, committed individual like Milton on our team.”

Goldsboro Milling began in 1916 as a feed mill that sold bag feed across eastern North Carolina. It soon turned its attention to bulk feed and in 1958 began to grow turkeys. In the mid 1980’s, Goldsboro Milling joined with Carroll’s Foods to form Carolina Turkeys, which is now Butterball. In the late 1980’s, Goldsboro Milling added swine, and today is the tenth largest swine producer in the U.S.

The NCPF selected Hendrixson for his outstanding achievements and commitment to the poultry industry. Early in his career, Hendrixson traveled across the country selling feed and offering nutritional knowledge. Always dedicated to helping others, when local farms were experiencing excessive mortality and could not receive timely results from the state lab, Hendrixson took it upon himself to produce quick lab results for farmers, regardless of if they were a current feed customer. This kindness continued to gain him respect throughout the industry, and in 1958, Hendrixson joined Browning Turkey Farms, a company that hatched, raised and processed turkeys in Winchester, Ky. before joining Goldsboro Milling Company in 1967.

Hendrixson now resides in Goldsboro, N.C., where he still works at Goldsboro Milling and also serves as a deacon and an elder in his church and is actively involved in the Kiwanis Club, a global volunteer organization dedicated to helping children around the world.

Source: North Carolina Poultry Federation

Is your meat cooked? There's an app for that

iDevices LLC is set to introduce its first product: the iGrill meat thermometer. The iGrill is a hardward and software package that allows users to use their iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad to check on their dinner.

The iGrill hardware is placed in the oven or on the barbeque with its metal probe implanted in the entrée. Users can check the temperature via the software, or have it sound alarm when the meat has reached the desired temperature. The hardware also acts as a traditional standalone meat thermometer.

The device will retail for $99 or $119 for dual meat probes.

Sources: Mobile Magazine, iGrill