Mark McKay has been promoted to president of the newly created Perdue Premium Meat Company, LLC, which aligns Perdue Farms’ continued growth in premium, branded products across its pet treat, pork, lamb and beef businesses.
“Mark is an experienced and thoughtful executive who will lead Perdue’s premium meat portfolio for the Coleman Natural, Niman Ranch, and pet treat brands to the next level of market penetration,” Randy Day, chief executive officer of Perdue Farms, said while announcing McKay’s promotion. “This move aligns the resources from production through sales to further our growth in premium, no-antibiotics-ever, all-vegetarian-fed products from animals raised to higher standards across the full range of proteins.”
McKay is a 30-year veteran of the poultry and meat industries. He joined Perdue in 2011 as part of the company’s acquisition of Coleman Natural Foods. Prior to his promotion, McKay served as executive vice president of specialty proteins and business development. His experience in organic poultry, no-antibiotics-ever beef and pork, and local brands with Coleman Natural Foods helped support Perdue’s transition from poultry to multiple proteins, and contribute to Perdue’s leadership in no-antibiotics-ever production and animal care. McKay also oversees the brands and operations acquired through Perdue’s 2015 purchase of Natural Food Holdings, including the Niman Ranch and Siouxpreme brands.
McKay is a graduate of Harvard University. He works out of the company’s Colorado office.
Perdue Farms is a third-generation, family owned company, headquartered in Salisbury, Maryland. According to the WATTAgNet Top Poultry Companies Database, it is the fourth largest broiler company in the United States and seventh largest broiler company in the world, having processed 61.74 million pounds of ready-to-cook chicken on a weekly basis in 2016. It is also the sixth largest turkey company in the United States. It slaughtered 283 million pounds of live turkeys in 2016.
