Frozen Foods Processor of the Year: West Liberty Foods

If you’ve ever made meatballs for a football tailgate or enjoyed chicken wings at a restaurant, chances are good you have eaten a West Liberty Foods product – our 2022 Frozen Foods Processor of the Year. West Liberty Foods produces grilled, baked, enrobed, chopped/formed, steam-cooked and convection items, such as grilled chicken strips and patties, meatballs, breakfast sausage and fully-cooked chicken wings. The company also produces sliced and whole muscle proteins and sous vide products for foodservice. Founded in 1996, when 47 farmers formed the Iowa Turkey Growers Co-Operative to purchase a turkey processing plant in West Liberty, Iowa, from Kraft Foods, the company has grown to over 2,000 employees across four facilities in three states, with a fifth location planned for construction in 2023. To discuss all that and more, on this episode of From the Cold Corner, we’re joined by Brandon Achen, CEO, and Michele Boney, director of sustainability.