Garner, NC (PressExposure) November 02, 2011 -- Butterball, LLC, the nation's leading turkey producer, was presented the 2011 Governor's Award for Excellence for an Innovative Partnership during a ceremony held on Thurs., Oct. 13 at the Sheraton Khoury in Greensboro, N.C.

As part of the North Carolina Workforce Development Partnership Conference, Butterball was honored for the company's involvement in establishing an ammonia refrigeration program at Sampson Community College in Clinton, N.C. Partners in the development of the program include Sampson Community College, Triangle South Workforce Development Board, Golden Leaf Foundation, Prestage Farms and Smithfield Foods.

"At Butterball, we strive to be innovators in our industry, and it is an honor to be recognized by the governor of North Carolina for our efforts toward bringing a new ammonia refrigeration training program to North Carolina, " said Rod Brenneman, president and chief executive officer of Butterball, LLC. "Training is essential in ensuring the safety of our associates, and we are thankful for our partners in this endeavor as well as the creative ideas from our own Gary Lenaghan, whose vision and determination led to the conception of this initiative."

The partnership began in 2006 when Gary Lenaghan, vice president of human resources at Butterball, recognized a need for a training program that was currently unfulfilled by other ammonia refrigeration training centers. With many North Carolina companies in need of training for associates and only three existing ammonia programs in the United States, Butterball approached Sampson Community College with a plan to bring the vastly needed program to the state.

Since commencing operations in July 2010, the ammonia refrigeration program at Sampson Community College has provided training for approximately 120 students from locations across the country. With Butterball's help in the program planning, design of the state-of-the-art training facility and by providing $100,000 in financial contributions, this initiative was able to become a reality.

About Butterball, LLC

Butterball, LLC is the largest producer of turkey products in the United States. Headquartered in Garner, N.C., Butterball produces more than one billion pounds of turkey each year, and the company supplies its products to more than 50 countries. Perhaps best known for its succulent whole bird products, the company also has a broad array of offerings for deli, retail and foodservice.

As the industry leader in quality and food safety, the company employs numerous processes to ensure the health of birds and implements recognized prevention measures to exceed food safety standards in its six plants located in North Carolina, Colorado, Arkansas and Missouri. In addition, Butterball has surpassed important workplace safety and health benchmarks set forth by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's Voluntary Protection Program.

The company's three-pronged approach to Doing Business Right focuses on self-governance, sustainability and social responsibility. The initiative plays a key role in providing internal oversight for integrating values that are important to the company, in particular its efforts to reduce its environmental footprint.

For more information about Butterball, visit http://www.butterballcorp.com. You can also call             1-800-BUTTERBALL       for answers to your most puzzling questions about turkey preparation.

Press Release Source: http://PressExposure.com/PR/Butterball,_LLC.html