Steven M. Anthony, 55
President
Anthony Timberlands Inc., Bearden
Steve Anthony, who grew up and lives in Fordyce, leads Anthony Timberlands, a family business founded in 1907. He graduated from Washington & Lee University with a degree in business administration and has a law degree from the University of Arkansas School of Law. Anthony Timberlands, headquartered in Bearden, operates several timber-processing facilities and manages 175,000 acres of timberland in south Arkansas. It reported $251.3 million in revenue in 2014. Anthony is past chairman of the Arkansas Forestry Commission and past president of the Arkansas Forestry Association and the Southern Forest Products Association. He serves on the Executive Committee of the Arkansas Forestry Association.
Ronald M. Cameron, 69
Chairman and CEO
Mountaire Corp., Little Rock
Mountaire, a poultry producer under the Mountaire Farms brands, had $2.1 billion in revenue in 2014, making it the fifth-largest private company headquartered in Arkansas ranked by revenue. Mountaire’s origins go back to 1914 when Guy Cameron started a commercial feed business in Arkansas. It now has almost 7,000 employees and operations in Maryland, Delaware, North Carolina and Arkansas. Ronald Cameron joined Mountaire in 1968 and became chairman and CEO after the death of his father, G. Ted Cameron, in 1978.
Greg W. Cole, 54
President and CEO
AgHeritage Farm Credit Services, Little Rock
Greg Cole joined the farm credit system more than 30 years ago as a student intern with what was then known as the Farm Credit Bank of St. Louis. He was named president and CEO of AgHeritage Farm Credit Services in April 2008. Cole has a bachelor’s degree in agriculture business and economics from Arkansas State University and is a graduate of the Graduate School of Banking at Louisiana State University. AgHeritage,
based in Little Rock, is a customer-owned lending cooperative with $1.1 billion in assets. It serves farmers in 24 Arkansas counties.
Ray C. Dillon, 60
President and CEO
Deltic Timber Corp., El Dorado
Ray Dillon has headed Deltic Timber Corp. since July 1, 2003. Deltic, a publicly traded company based in El Dorado, owns about 530,000 acres of timberland, operates two sawmills and a medium-density fiberboard plant and is involved in real estate development. Deltic’s net sales in 2015 totaled $193.9 million and it had income in 2015 of $11 million. From 2000-03, Dillon was an EVP at Gaylord Container Corp. of Chicago. Dillon received a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Mississippi State University in 1977 and earned an MBA from the University of Chicago in 2000.
Ed Fryar, 62
CEO and Founder
Ozark Mountain Poultry, Rogers
Ed Fryar appears on the Power List for the first time this year, though he probably should have been on it for some time. Ozark Mountain Poultry, founded in 2001, was No. 40 on Arkansas Business’ most recent list of largest private companies in Arkansas, with $250 million in sales in 2014. It has more than 1,300 employees. Fryar, an Arkansas native, has a bachelor’s in economics and a master’s in agricultural economics from the University of Arkansas and a doctorate in agricultural and applied economics from the University of Minnesota. He was a tenured professor at UA for 13 years and serves on the Arkansas Governor’s Council of Economic Advisors.
Carl and Charles George, 33
Co-CEO and Co-President
George’s Inc., Springdale
Twin brothers Carl and Charles George were named co-CEOs and presidents of George’s Inc. of Springdale in April 2013, taking over from their father, Gary, who continues to serve as chairman. The company, one of the nation’s largest privately held poultry companies, was founded in 1920 and is in its fourth generation of family leadership. George’s was No. 13 on Arkansas Business’ most recent list of the state’s largest private companies with revenue in 2014 of $950 million and 4,700 employees. Carl has been with George’s since 1997 and is responsible for leading all live production and plant operations. He serves on the board of the National Chicken Council and is a member of the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association. Carl received his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas. Charles also has been with George’s since 1997 and oversees sales, accounting, human resources, quality assurance and purchasing. He serves on the board of the Arkansas Poultry Federation and the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association and is a member of the National Chicken Council. Charles also received his B.S.B.A. from the Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas.
Keith Glover, 60
President and CEO
Producers Rice Mill Inc., Stuttgart
Keith Glover, a native of Carlisle, was a certified public accountant before joining Producers Rice Mill of Stuttgart in 1982; he has led the company since 1988. Producers Rice, a farmer-owned cooperative with more than 2,500 members, was No. 22 on Arkansas Business’ latest list of largest private companies in Arkansas with $547 million in revenue in 2014. Glover, who has a bachelor’s in accounting from Arkansas State University, is chairman of the USA Rice Federation’s World Market Price Subcommittee.
Trent Goins, 37
President and CEO
O.K. Foods Inc., Fort Smith
Trent Goins, son of former O.K. Foods President Randy Goins, became president and CEO of O.K. Foods of Fort Smith in February 2014. Trent Goins joined the poultry producer and feed company, founded by his great-grandfather, in 2002 and went on to become senior VP of sales and marketing before landing the CEO job. Before joining the company, Goins was a legislative assistant for former U.S. Rep. Marion Berry, who represented Arkansas’ 1st Congressional District. Industrias Bachoco, a major poultry producer based in Mexico, acquired O.K. in 2011. O.K. Industries has 3,000 employees in Arkansas, Georgia and Oklahoma.
Karl D. Kennedy, 57
President and CEO
Riceland Foods Inc., Stuttgart
Danny Kennedy joined Riceland Foods, the world’s largest miller and marketer of rice, as executive vice president and chief operating officer in 2000 and became president and CEO in 2004. Kennedy, a native of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, previously worked at Monsanto Co. Riceland, based in Stuttgart, is the 10th-largest private company in the state with $1.2 billion in revenue in 2014.
Todd Simmons, 44
CEO
Simmons Foods Inc., Siloam Springs
Todd Simmons, grandson of the late company founder, Bill Simmons, heads poultry company Simmons Foods, based in Siloam Springs. Simmons Foods was No. 7 on Arkansas Business’ most recent list of the largest private companies in Arkansas, with $1.4 billion in revenue in 2014 and 5,853 employees companywide. Simmons, who started working at the company out of high school, has a degree in entrepreneurship and business management from Georgetown University. He’s chairman of the National Chicken Council and was named Industry Leader of the Year by The Poultry Federation in 2015.
Donnie Smith, 56
President and CEO
Tyson Foods Inc., Springdale
Donnie Smith, a native of Tennessee, has led Tyson Foods, one of the world’s largest food producers, since 2009. He has experience in almost every aspect of the business, having started at Tyson in poultry operations in Tennessee and then moving to Tyson headquarters in Springdale to work as a commodity buyer. He became director of commodity purchasing in 1991 and proceeded to rise up the ranks. Tyson is the third-largest employer in Arkansas with 23,000 workers in the state and revenue of $40.6 billion in fiscal 2015. Smith graduated from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville with a bachelor’s degree in animal science.
Randy Veach, 65
President
Arkansas Farm Bureau, Little Rock
Randy Veach is in his eighth year as president of the Arkansas Farm Bureau. Veach, a third-generation farmer, is president and chairman of the board of Southern Farm Bureau Life Insurance Co. and a member of the board of the American Farm Bureau, the nation’s largest farm advocacy organization, and of the Arkansas World Trade Center board of advisers. In June 2015, he was appointed to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Trade Advisory Committee for Tobacco, Cotton & Peanuts.
Wes Ward, 33
Secretary
Arkansas Department of Agriculture, Little Rock
Wes Ward was appointed Arkansas’ third secretary of agriculture by Gov. Asa Hutchinson in March 2015. The Arkansas Agriculture Department includes the State Plant Board, the Livestock & Poultry Commission and the Arkansas Forestry Commission. Ward has served in the United States Marine Corps for over 15 years and has completed deployments to Afghanistan and Jordan. He currently is serving in the Marine Corps Reserve as a civil affairs officer with the 3rd Civil Affairs Group. Ward earned a Bachelor of Science in agricultural business with an emphasis in agricultural finance from Arkansas State University and a law degree, a Master of Laws in agricultural and food law and a Master of Science in agricultural economics from the University of Arkansas.
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