Tom Bower of Foster Farms will lead the California Poultry Federation as chairman with the recent announcement by Zacky Farms that they will be going out of business by January 2019. Matt Junkel of Petaluma Poultry will serve as vice-chairman. David Pitman continues as Past Chairman.

The Executive Committee appointed Dalton Rasmussen, president of the Squab Producers of California, as the new secretary-treasurer. Rasmussen was named president of the Squab Producers in 2012 after the retirement of former CPF board chairman Bob Shipley. Squab Producers of California is a unique a cooperative of small independent farmers. As a cooperative, Squab Producers brings the best of both worlds to its customers – birds raised by small, independent farmers AND a modern HACCP-compliant USDA inspected processing plant which utilizes state-of-the-art equipment and techniques to assure the optimum in quality and food safety.

“The squab industry has always participated in the meetings, quality assurance programs and seminars sponsored by the CPF, and they also support our political PACS and the scholarship fund,” President Bill Mattos said. “Dalton will be a great member of the Executive board.”

Rasmussen has served on the Squab Producers board of directors since 2008 and he worked as production manager of SupHerb Farms in Turlock for eight years before leading the squab organization. He was raised outside of Tulsa, Oklahoma, then moved to Livermore, California where he graduated high school. He graduated from Modesto Junior College with a poultry science degree and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo with a BS degree in Poultry Science. He married Amy Conroy in 1998; they have three children.

Today he also grows squab for the cooperative and farms walnuts as a hobby.

“We look forward to working with Dalton on the CPF Executive Committee as we reach out and work with industry and political leaders in the coming year,” said CPF Chairman Bower.

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