Carter Joins Pilgrim's Pride as Senior Vice President of Commodity Risk Management
PITTSBURG, Texas, July 16, 2007 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX News Network/ -- Pilgrim's Pride Corporation (NYSE: PPC), the world's largest chicken company, today announced that W. Edwin Carter has joined the company as senior vice president of commodity risk management.
In this newly created position, Mr. Carter is responsible for setting the strategic direction and exposure to all commodity-based items such as grains, meals, oils, gas and diesel. Pilgrim's Pride ranks among the largest grain buyers in the nation, purchasing approximately 324 million bushels of corn and 3 million tons of soybean meal annually. He will report to O.B. Goolsby Jr., Pilgrim's Pride president and chief executive officer.
"Soaring prices for corn, soybean meal and other commodities represent one of the biggest operating challenges facing the chicken industry today, so it is imperative that we seize every opportunity to manage these costs and reduce our exposure to market volatility," said Mr. Goolsby. "Edwin has a proven track record of managing risk in a wide variety of commodity markets, and we are confident that he will be a valuable addition to our senior management team."
Mr. Carter has more than 20 years of experience in trading and risk management in commodity markets. Before joining Pilgrim's Pride, he served as director of procurement -- commodity risk management for Coca-Cola Bottlers' Sales & Services Company LLC in Atlanta, Ga., with responsibility for managing commodity risk for the bottlers of the world's most recognized brand.
He previously served as director of dairy and cheese purchasing and commodity risk management for United Foodservice Purchasing Co-op in Dallas, Texas, where he was responsible for the day-to-day procurement and price risk management for dairy and cheese items for Yum! Brands Inc., the world's largest restaurant company. Prior to holding that position, Mr. Carter was a commodity trader for Perdue Farms, Inc. and Central Soya Co., as well as a cash/futures grain broker.
Mr. Carter earned bachelor's and master's degrees in agricultural economics from the University of Kentucky in Lexington.
About Pilgrim's Pride Corporation
Pilgrim's Pride is the largest chicken company in the United States and Puerto Rico and the second-largest in Mexico. Pilgrim's Pride employs approximately 55,500 people and operates 37 processing and 12 prepared-foods facilities, with major operations in Texas, Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Mexico and Puerto Rico as well as other facilities in Arizona, Iowa, Mississippi, Ohio and Utah.
Pilgrim's Pride products are sold to foodservice, retail and frozen entree customers. The Company's primary distribution is through retailers, foodservice distributors and restaurants throughout the United States and Puerto Rico and in the Northern and Central regions of Mexico. For more information, please visit http://www.pilgrimspride.com.
Media Contact: Ray Atkinson Director of Corporate Communications (540) 896-0406 ray.atkinson@pilgrimspride.com Investor Contact: Gary Rhodes Vice President, Corporate Communications & Investor Relations (903) 434-1495 Gary.rhodes@pilgrimspride.com -->SOURCE Pilgrim's Pride Corporation
Ray Atkinson, Director of Corporate Communications, +1-540-896-0406, ray.atkinson@pilgrimspride.com, or Gary Rhodes, Vice President, Corporate Communications & Investor Relations, +1-903-434-1495, Gary.rhodes@pilgrimspride.com, both of Pilgrim's Pride Corporation -->http://www.pilgrimspride.com/
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Cameron Bruett
Communications
Phone: +1 970.506.7801 | Email: cameron.bruett@jbssa.com