Our Growers
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The continued success of West Liberty Foods begins on the farm, by our hard working Growers and Owners. This rich Iowa farm tradition has been carried through generations of farm families, and no one cares more about bringing quality product from the farm to your plate than the Growers from the West Liberty Foods family. West Liberty Foods was formed by 47 Iowa based turkey growers and this Cooperative continually delivers superior quality birds that exceed industry standards. No one is more committed to the health and welfare of their turkeys than the Growers themselves, and this commitment carries over to our customers. Grower operations are audited annually for production practices and animal welfare. |
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| West Liberty Foods’ Chairman Paul Hill Earns 2010 Iowa Farm Bureau Distinguished Service to Agriculture Award 12/3/2010 1:13:31 PM Zach Bader Paul Hill’s work helped preserve turkey farming in Iowa, which provides job opportunities for farm families and eastern Iowa workers and supplies safe and healthy meat products for customers for many well know retail and foodservice customers nationwide. His efforts have furthered the cause of Iowa agriculture and rural communities over the past few decades, earning him the 2010 Iowa Farm Bureau Distinguished Service to Agriculture Award. Hill was recognized during the Iowa Farm Bureau (IFBF) annual meeting in Des Moines, Dec. 1. The award honors individuals who have played a significant role in the agricultural industry at the local, state and/or national level. This is the 33rd year for the award. Winners received plaques and will be added to a permanent display at IFBF headquarters in West Des Moines. Paul Hill grew up on a family farm near Ellsworth, Iowa and has dedicated his career to helping families (including his own) get started and stay involved in poultry farming. After graduating from St. Olaf College in Minnesota with a degree in economics, Hill had an opportunity to tour a refugee camp in southeast Asia that opened his eyes to the importance of meeting the growing nutritional needs of those living in poverty around the world. Inspired, Hill returned home to raise turkeys, cattle and crops with his dad. Hill and his family experienced the highs and lows of turkey and cattle farming during the 1970s and 1980s. They liquidated the cattle herd but kept the poultry end alive by growing turkeys on contract for the Louis Rich processing plant in West Liberty, Iowa. In 1995, rumors floated that the Louis Rich plant would fold. Hill served on committees and the governor’s advisory group, hoping to identify a company to purchase the plant. Oscar Meyer announced it would close the West Liberty facility effective December 31, 1996, leaving Hill and 46 other contract growers for the company – and 50 percent of the state’s turkey production – in a precarious situation. From May through December 1996, Hill worked to orchestrate a deal between Louis Rich and the 47 contract farmers. Hill convinced the contract farmers to take on the enormous risk themselves, purchasing the plant jointly through a cooperative – Iowa Turkey Growers Cooperative. To aid the transition, Hill was able to secure USDA loan guarantees and the support of local, state, and national government officials and farm groups like Farm Bureau. Today, Paul Hill remains the Chariman of West Liberty Foods. The cooperative now owns facilities in West Liberty, Mount Pleasant, Sigourney and Tremonton, Utah, as well as a state-of-the-art Quality Assurance Laboratory and USDA inspected Pilot Plant in West Liberty. Hill’s accomplishments have earned recognition at the local, state, and national levels. He received the Iowa Master Farmer Award in 1995, the Des Moines Register’s Iowa Farm Leader Award in 1997 and the Farmer Cooperative Director of the Year Award in 2002. In 2008, he presented a Thanksgiving turkey to President George W. Bush. Hill has served as chairman of the National Turkey Federation, the American Farm Bureau poultry advisory committee and the Iowa Ag Finance Corporation. He has also remained an active community leader, serving on various church boards and teaching junior high Sunday school throughout his adult life. Hill and his wife, Mary, still farm in Ellsworth. They have three children: Peter, Nathan and Rachel. Retrieved from: http://www.iowafarmbureau.com/article.aspx?articleID=21491 |