Don Jackson, president of the poultry division of Foster Farms, Livingston, California, was installed today as Chairman of the National Chicken Council, the trade association for the chicken production and processing industry. Mark Hickman, president and chief executive officer of Peco Foods, Inc., Tuscaloosa, Alabama, took office as Vice Chairman, and Mike Welch, president and chief executive officer of Harrison Poultry, Bethlehem, Georgia, became Secretary-Treasurer.
The new officers were installed during the NCC Annual Conference held in the Washington, D.C., area attended by members of the industry from across the country. Officers serve one-year terms.
Jackson has been president of the poultry division of Foster Farms, the largest chicken company based in the West, for the past five years. Previously he was executive vice president for foodservice of ConAgra Poultry Company in Duluth, Georgia. Before that he worked for 22 years for Seaboard Farms of Athens, Georgia, including four years as president and CEO. He has served on the NCC Board of Directors since 1996.
Jackson and his wife, Teresa, reside in Turlock, California. They have six children.
Hickman joined Peco Foods in 1982 and served in many corporate administrative capacities, including safety and personnel. In 1987, he became vice president, with emphasis on finance and general management, and was elected to the Peco board of directors. He was named president and CEO in 2002.
Hickman joined the NCC Board of Directors in 1988 and was elected to the Executive Committee in 2002. He has served since 1998 as chairman of the NCC Political Action Committee, which raises funds from individuals in the industry and makes donations to selected candidates for federal office and incumbent officeholders.
Hickman and his wife, Ann, have two sons and live in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
Welch has been in the industry for 38 years and has held various management positions at several major poultry companies. He has been president and CEO of Harrison Poultry for 14 years. Welch serves on the boards of several industry organizations, including the Georgia Poultry Federation, the Georgia Poultry Improvement Association, and the USA Poultry & Egg Export Council (USAPEEC) International Poultry Development Program. He is also active in many local and civic organizations.
Welch and his wife, Becky, live in Winder, Georgia. They have two children.
George Watts of Alexandria, Virginia, was elected to another term as president of NCC, a post he has held since 1972.
The National Chicken Council represents integrated chicken producer-processors, the companies that produce, process and market chickens. Member companies of NCC account for approximately 95 percent of the chicken sold in the United States.
