Diestel Family Ranch, sustainably raising turkeys since 1949, is acquiring Willie Bird Turkeys, a like-minded family farm that has become known around the world for its high-quality poultry. The company’s fresh free-range natural and organic turkeys, plus award-winning smoked holiday and year-round products, will be sold by Diestel under the well-loved Willie Bird brand. From extraordinarily juicy and tasty turkeys for Thanksgiving, to maple-wood smoked chicken and duck, Willie’s products are smooth, mild-flavored, and a delight to the most discriminate palate.

A fellow fourth-generation rancher, Willie Benedetti was a legend who began Willie Bird Turkeys in 1963 when he was just 14-years old. In his first year, Willie hatched nearly 500 turkeys and raised them for sale as part of a Future Farmers of America (FFA) project while a Sonoma High School freshman. Willie’s independence and down-to-earth approach to farming is what made his premium offerings an instant hit among his customers. A renegade by night and turkey farmer by day, Willie never left quality to chance. His family-run farm always controlled the entire process of raising the birds and getting them to market. Today, Willie’s products are featured on the main menu of first-class hotels, restaurants, deli’s, and airlines, as well as through Williams Sonoma and independent natural and organic grocers in California.