Sanderson Farms : LE CHUNG FARM

By nature of their occupation, farmers tend to understand a great deal about overcoming adversity, whether it is natural disasters, extreme weather conditions, sickness, disease or equipment malfunction. For one Sanderson Farms family farmer in particular, the past two years have presented numerous obstacles, yet that farmer has demonstrated remarkable resilience in the face of challenges that would have crippled many people.

Family farmer, Le Chung, owns and operates an eight-house broiler farm in Teague, Texas. Chung has recently faced many challenges outside of those typically experienced by family farmers. In the summer of 2020, she lost her husband and fellow poultry farmer in a tragic vehicle accident that left her with the primary responsibilities of running their broiler farm.

As if this tragedy was not already too much for one person to handle, it was closely followed by the devastating effects of a winter storm which hit Texas in early 2021 and caused widespread power outages and devastation to the area. Like many other family farmers, Chung worked diligently to ensure her houses had sufficient fuel and feed supplies necessary to meet the birds' needs during the storm. Though faced with many hardships over the past several years, Chung met every challenge head-on and refused to let any setback stand between her and her passion for farming and growing chickens to feed a hungry world.

Le Chung and her husband were happily married for 35 years before he passed away in 2020. She has one daughter and two grandchildren. Chung enjoys the stability that growing chickens for Sanderson Farms provides. "Farming makes me feel strong, especially after losing my husband," said Chung. "I proved to myself that I could still honor him by keeping the farm running with the help of my loyal workers, David and Beto."

After unexpectedly losing her partner, Chung faced many obstacles after her husband's death and has worked hard to overcome each one of them. "While everyone else was waiting for her to put this farm up for sale, she stepped up to the plate and took care of this farm and has been raising chickens while being a successful businesswoman in agriculture," said Jessica Cochran, broiler flock supervisor for Sanderson Farms' Waco, Texas production division. "She is a top performer for the Waco division and is extremely successful."

Without a doubt, Chung is passionate about farming and enjoys raising a quality source of protein to provide nutritious meals for families all across the United States and surrounding countries. "We treat the chickens with respect since they are living animals that provide not only our way of living, but feed many people," said Chung. "Happy chickens produce good, healthy meat, so we try to keep them as comfortable as possible."