December 28, 2020

Cobb appoints interim president

An experienced leader in the poultry breeding industry has been appointed to the role of interim president of Cobb, the company announced on December 23.

Stan Reid, current vice president of North and South America, is assuming the leadership position vacated by Joel Sappenfield, who recently left the company.


Reid has almost 40 years' experience in the industry and has been at Cobb for 20 years in a variety of roles. He served as a US sales manager in 2001-2002, director of sales and service in 2002-2003, general manager of North American business in 2003-2005 and vice president of Asia and North American business units in 2005-2007, before eventually overseeing all global business units in 2007.

Reid has been in his current role since 2015, which also included overseeing global marketing for Cobb.

Before joining the Cobb team in 2001, Reid worked in sales at Merial Inc. (now Boehringer Ingelheim) and Agri-Bio. Prior to serving in these roles, he worked at Foster Farms in California, the United States, where he was responsible for contract grower broiler production, as well as the hatchery and live production divisions.

"We're grateful for Joel's many contributions to the company and have great confidence in Stan's ability to continue executing our global strategy, developed by the Cobb leadership team," said Donnie King, president of poultry for Tyson Foods, which owns Cobb-Vantress, Inc. "Cobb is a unique and important part the global poultry supply chain, and we're proud of the company's critical role in helping feed people around the world."

"I am excited about the future of Cobb and continuing to move our business and iconic brand forward," said Reid. "I am honored to have been chosen to help lead Cobb during this transition. Our team remains committed to supporting and building relationships with our customers around the world. There are some exciting things coming in the future and we are poised for growth."

- Cobb