People: NCC elects Bill Lovette as chairman
Bill Lovette, president and chief executive officer of Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation, has been elected to serve as 2012-2013 chairman of the National Chicken Council (NCC).
Lovette joined Pilgrim’s as president and chief executive officer on January 3, 2011. He served as president and chief operating officer of Case Foods for the previous two years. Before that, 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.
He began his career in the poultry business in 1982 with Valmac Industries, which was later acquired by Tyson Foods. He has served in many leadership roles in the industry, including chairman of USPOULTRY and the International Foodservice Manufacturers Association. Lovette is a graduate of Texas A&M University and Harvard Business School’s Advanced Management Program.
Serving as vice chairman is Michael Helgeson, chief executive officer of GNP Company, St. Cloud, Minnesota. New to the officer corps, Jerry Lane, president of Claxton Poultry in Claxton, Georgia, takes over as Secretary-Treasurer.
Officers serve one-year terms.
