Maureen Stickel is the Director of International Program Development for the World Poultry Foundation. She leads WPF’s training strategy and execution, monitoring and data systems development, as well as oversees the foundation’s strategic communications. Prior to joining WPF, Maureen worked with IDinsight as an Associate Director where she led their Southern Africa regional office. Maureen has also worked for the University of Wisconsin-Madison to manage various research projects with government partners in Paraguay, the same country where she served in the U.S. Peace Corps as a Community Economic Development Volunteer. Maureen holds a bachelor’s degree in International Economics from Georgetown University and a master’s degree in Agricultural and Applied Economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Maureen speaks English, Spanish, and Mandarin Chinese. Maureen currently resides in Lusaka, Zambia.
Joe Antonio has extensive experience in poultry production spanning over a period of 16 years. After graduating from the University of Zimbabwe with a degree in Animal Science, he worked in different management roles in the poultry industry in Zimbabwe, Mozambique, and Nigeria. He most recently worked as the Chief Operating Officer of Premium Poultry Farms in Nigeria and prior to that held positions at New Horizons Mozambique and Crest Poultry Group. He has worked in established companies and in start-up situations where he was involved in staff training and setting up biosecurity standards and Best Standard Operating Procedures (B.S.O.P) documentation. Joe speaks English and Portuguese.
Evelyn Tatenda Kamba has a diverse background in training coordination, rural development, research, and teaching. With extensive experience in the poultry industry, she has coordinated and facilitated training for poultry farmers and industry professionals. Evelyn is also a researcher with a Master of Science in Animal Science and is currently pursuing a Doctor of Philosophy degree in the same field. With this academic background and extensive professional experience, Evelyn has become an expert in the field of animal science, with a particular focus on livestock production and sustainable agriculture. She is a member of the South African Society for Animal (SASAS), British Society of Animal Science (BSAS), and Organisation for Women in Science for the Developing World (OWSD). She has shared her work on various international platforms. Outside of her professional work, Eve has volunteered and held leadership positions in women empowerment programs in Zimbabwe and South Africa.
Jan de Jonge joined the WPF in June 2022 as the Senior Program Director for Africa. Jan will be a part of the WPF Executive Team and will be responsible for managing WPF’s development programs in Africa and engagement with organizations and private companies to build poultry distribution networks targeting smallholder farmers. With a background in finance and poultry production, Mr. De Jonge has experience in the development of agricultural supply chains focused on smallholder farmers. He was most recently the General Manager of Soma Bakery BV in the Netherlands and prior to that held positions in Rabobank, Eggs for Africa; Mozambique Fresh Eggs and New Horizons Mozambique.
Mr. De Jonge currently resides in the Netherlands and speaks fluent Dutch, English, and Portuguese.
Tokozile N. Ngwenya is the CommCare Coordinator for the World Poultry Foundation. She is responsible for leading partner engagement with WPF data platforms, supports data collection and analysis across the foundation, and provides day-to-day support and training for our CommCare platform. Prior to joining the WPF, Tokozile worked with SolarAid as a Monitoring and Evaluation Consultant, an international charity that combats poverty and climate change by providing access to solar lights. Tokozile has over a decade of demonstrated experience in research, surveys, logical frameworks, interviews, and focus groups across various sectors namely Public Health (Malaria), Water and Sanitation, Private Sector Development and Renewable Energy. Tokozile has co-authored a number of publications in the leading journal on malaria research, Malaria Journal, and has been featured in a PBS NEWSHOUR article. Tokozile currently resides in Lusaka, Zambia.
Alexandria Parvin is the Operational Assistant for the World Poultry Foundation. She assists WPF in their mission to be a catalyst for improving lives through poultry by providing team and operational support. With over a decade of work in the hospitality industry prior to joining WPF, Alexandria worked in management for Fifth Group Restaurants in Atlanta, GA. She also worked as a coordinator for Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program at RWTH Aachen University while attending Kennesaw State University where she graduated with a BA in Modern Language and Culture. Alexandria speaks English and German and currently resides in Atlanta, GA.
Gordon Gossett is the CFO of the World Poultry Foundation and has served in this role since 2017. Previously, he served Aviagen in accounting and finance management for over 5 years, and has over 10 years’ experience in public accounting and business consulting. He is a CPA and serves on the Alabama State Board of Public Accountancy. He is also a US Navy Veteran.
Richard Fritz is Technical Advisor to the World Poultry Foundation (WPF). WPF works to increase poultry and egg production by increasing farmer access to improved breeds, quality feeds and training programs.
Mr. Fritz is co-owner of Global AgriTrends. Global AgriTrends is a global agricultural consulting firm that assists meat and poultry companies and associations to research market opportunities and track international trends in trade.
Previously Mr. Fritz served as the Executive Director of the Food and Agriculture Export Alliance (FAEA). FAEA is an organization of agricultural cooperators and private entities in the meat, poultry, feed grains, dairy and soybean sectors which works with foreign governments to enhance food and feed safety laws and regulations to assure consumers receive safe and wholesome products.
Mr. Fritz served as General Sales Manager and Associate Administrator for in the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service. He has also served as Assistant Director of Agriculture for the State of Oregon; the marketing director for U.S. Wheat Associates; and chief economist for the National Association of Wheat Growers. He has served as a staff member to the U.S. House of Representatives Agriculture Committee.
Mr. Fritz holds a Bachelor’s degree in economics and a Master’s degree in econometrics.
James Ferns joined the WPF in 2023 as Country Coordinator for Africa. James moved to Mozambique in 2015 where he has lived and worked since, in multiple roles within New Horizons one of the country’s largest poultry companies, and now as owner of a training and consulting company called Academia Wunnuwa. James uses his background in accounting, poultry production and business improvement to support the WPF’s development programs in Africa.
James holds a Bachelor’s degree in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics from Oxford University and a EMBA from Quantic school of Business and Technology. James speaks English and Portuguese.
Taylor Yess is the Communications Coordinator for the World Poultry Foundation. She supports WPF’s strategic communications initiatives including social media content, website management, multimedia development, and blog writing. With almost a decade of experience in non-profit and grant-making organizations, she has provided comprehensive support for programmatic and communication goals. Taylor earned her bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of Minnesota and presently resides in Lusaka, Zambia.
Elton Maddox is a veteran of the US poultry industry, and joined what is now Wayne Farms in 1974, working in all aspects of management before eventually rising to the role of CEO/Chairman of the Board of Wayne Farms. He retired from Wayne Farms in 2019 and continues to serve on the board of directors. Elton has served on numerous industry boards during his distinguished career and is a past President of the Georgia Poultry Federation, the Georgia Poultry Processors Association, and served as Chairman of the Board of Directors for both the Georgia Poultry Improvement Association and the National Chicken Council. He is a past chairman of the U.S. Poultry and Egg Association and past Chairman of the US Poultry Harold E. Ford Foundation. Mr. Maddox was the 2017 National Poultry and Food Distributor’s Lifetime Achievement Award recipient.
Jim Sumner has served as president of the USA Poultry & Egg Export Council (USAPEEC), from 1990 until June 2022 at which time he was named senior trade advisor, to the non-profit trade association. USAPEEC has 16 offices around the world conducting marketing activities and working to resolve trade policy issues. During his 32-year poultry career, Sumner was one of the founders of the predecessor organization to the World Poultry Foundation, known as the UIPDP, which successfully operated a joint venture broiler facility and served as a demonstration project for western technology in Russia. He was also one of the founders of the International Poultry Council, where he served as president for 14 years, a global poultry organization whose members include 28 countries and represents over 90 percent of global poultry production. Prior to his involvement in poultry, Sumner was involved in the dairy industry, working for two different cooperatives, one based in Philadelphia and the other in Louisville, Ky. Prior to that, Sumner served as director of marketing for the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture. He brings expertise in international trade, negotiations marketing and policy formation to the WPF board.
Mike Welch retired from Harrison Poultry after 25 years of service having served as the President and CEO. He has 25 years with other US integrators including Case Foods and Sanderson Farms. In 2008 he served as Chairman of the National Chicken Council and is one of the original founding members of WPF (founded as UIPDP), currently serving the WPF board as Vice Chairman. He shares expertise in poultry processing and sales and is a National Chicken Council Honorary Lifetime Member.
Jim Wayt is the Managing Director of Intervision Foods, of which he is a founding member and has served for nearly 20 years. In 2017, he served as the USA Poultry Egg Export Council Chairman and is the newly elected Secretary of the World Poultry Foundation board. He joined this board in 2018, bringing expertise in export and trade to the foundation.
Mark Ham is the current Treasurer of the World Poultry Foundation. Mark graduated form the University of Georgia in 1976 with a degree in accounting and joined Cagle’s after graduation as an accountant. During his tenure with Cagle’s he was promoted to Vice President and CFO and was elected to the Board of Directors. Mark is a Life Member of the Georgia Poultry Federation (Chairman in 2011) and has served on the board of the Tennessee Poultry Federation. After Cagle’s, Mark joined American Proteins as VP of Business Development and was promoted to President and then CEO and also served on the API the Board of Directors. In 2018, Mark transitioned to the CEO of the Bagwell Foundation and worked there until his retirement in 2022.
Steve Anderson is the President of Lamex Foods Inc., which he has served for 33 years. He currently serves on the Folds of Honor Board and the CAPEQ Board. He has served as a board member for WPF since 2016, bringing knowledge and expertise in trade and foreign relations.
Bruce Dooyema has been with Center Fresh Group for over 30 years, and currently serves as Logistics Manager. He has held board positions on the American Egg Board, United Egg Producers, Dordt University Advisory Board and is the Chairman of the Iowa Egg Council. Bruce joined the WPF board in 2018 with expertise in egg layer production and industry.
Michalene (Micki) Donegan – Micki Donegan is currently a Managing Director for Rabobank Wholesale North America after starting with the Bank as a Senior Credit Analyst and later becoming a Relationship Manager in 2010. Since joining Rabobank, Micki oversees poultry, egg, and turkey wholesale accounts in the United States as well as general agribusiness accounts on the East Coast. She is one of eight Relationship Managers in the Rabobank Atlanta office. Prior to joining Rabobank, she worked for First Union in Atlanta and National Westminster Bank in New York. A native of New Jersey, she holds a BS and an MBA from Seton Hall University, is a CFA Chartholder and has her Series 69, 73 and 24 FINRA Security licenses.
Greg Tyler joined the Board in 2022 and was recently appointed as the President of the USA Poultry and Egg Export Council.