Name: Terry Paschall
Title: Vice President for Mid-Central Region
Company: Darling Ingredients

Terry Paschall grew up on a small family farm in Murray, Kentucky, where they grew tobacco, soybeans, and corn. His plan growing up was to continue farming for his entire life, as there was no substitute for being able to work daily with parents, grandparents, and great grandparents and learning the lessons of life.

When he became unsure if the family farm could support a new generation, he took his FFA experience and love for agriculture to Murray State University to study Agribusiness. Following graduation, Paschall entered the agriculture job force working in the poultry industry.

“I took one poultry class in college, and really had not given any thought to pursuing a career in this area,” he remarked. “My college advisor, Dr. Charles Chaney, was a poultry specialist. After graduation, he called me to his office one day and said I should consider a career in the poultry industry. I accepted a job in eastern North Carolina with Perdue Farms in April of 1985. I got married, got in the car, and drove 800 miles from home to work at an operation of 2,500 employees, and which processed 400,000 chickens a day.”

Just a few years later. Paschall learned Seaboard Farms was building a chicken processing facility in Mayfield, just 30 miles from his home.

“I accepted a position with Seaboard Farms and was involved in the startup of that operation in 1990,” he said. “This was the first poultry processing facility in the state of Kentucky. It was the neatest experience of my life to be involved in the startup of that operation.”

Fast forward 30 years, Paschall began working for Darling Ingredients and is currently the Vice President of the Mid-Central Region, where he oversees operations at plants in Kentucky and Arkansas. Darling takes animal and food byproducts from various companies across the world and recycles them into other renewable ingredients for feed, farm, health, and fuel applications among many others. He said his company collects 8 to 15 million pounds of material each week that would otherwise end up in a landfill.

When asked what he likes most about his job, he said, “One word – People.” 

“The poultry industry allowed me to see things I would have never seen and meet people I would have never met. All business generally has one thing in common – PEOPLE. The people and employees of a business are the heart and soul of what can be accomplished and achievements which can be met. There is nothing more rewarding in life than to be surrounded by great people who help to make you successful. The best part is seeing these people grow and become successful as well. The poultry industry is a challenging business, but it is also a very rewarding one. There are never two days the same and anytime you think you have it all figured out; you find out quickly that you probably do not. We all grow in life, not through the easy times, but during those times which can be challenging and encourage us to get out of our comfort zone.

Paschall also said that he learned very quickly after college graduation that the major a student chooses is just one small part of career success.

“Education is the root to our knowledge and allows us to learn and understand the basics we need to know as we travel on the journey of life. Understanding the basic principles of business and how the business world operates is very important. Interpersonal skills are very important, especially in today’s world. There is never a substitute for experience, and many of those experiences can be painful. We have lost some of the personal interaction today with Email and Social Media. People still want to be treated like a person and not be considered a number or domain name. It is amazing that so many struggle in today’s world just carrying on a one on one conversation. There is no alternative for interpersonal relationships.”

Explain your job and the skills (learned or soft) you need to accomplish your job.

I once had a college professor who started off each class with the phrase “Plan your work and work your plan!” Each moment of every day we are blessed to have is another chance for us to accomplish something amazing.  Managing our time wisely and constructively is the key.  We get one shot at these opportunities.  We can truly amaze ourselves in life if we believe we can accomplish anything that may seem like a challenge at the moment.  Believing it can be done is the beginning of accomplishing those tasks set before us.  The key to success in life, professionally or personally, is about being organized, having a plan, communicating with all involved, and setting goals in your life.  Proverbs 29:18 teaches us, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.”  One should always have a vision, not for the moment, but for the days which lie ahead.  One has to understand that in the business world, it is all about results. We will all be judged, not how much we tried, not on how much we cared, not how much we wanted to – All of which are very important- but in the end, it is about results.

What advice would you give a young person looking for a career?

There are three things important in life: Faith, Family, and Future.  There is another “F” that can go on the list as well.  That is FOOD.  People are going to eat and being involved in agriculture and the food industry is a business which will not go away.  The food of choice for Americans and many around the world is poultry and chicken products.  The industry has exploded over the past fifty years and continues to set the pathway for production and efficiency for food processing.  If you are looking for great challenge and great rewards, there is no industry that offers such a wide array of experiences and opportunities.  It requires hard work and determination, but will help develop skills and relationships which will last a lifetime.  There are really not a lot of “secrets” to success and there is generally not a lot of “luck” involved.  Create circumstances that allow you to be successful.  Find that “mentor” in your life that will help and support you along the way.

I think these following guidelines can help us find that success that we all strive to achieve.  The Rotary Club has a motto called the “Four Way Test” that I feel if we all lived by, personally and professionally, really helps to make a lot of our decisions very simple.     

“…OF WHAT WE THINK, SAY, OR DO….

1.    Is it the TRUTH?

2.    Is it FAIR to all concerned?

3.    Will it build GOODWILL and better Friendships?

4.    Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?