Jake Harper
Former U.S. Senator David Perdue has no affiliation with Perdue Chicken, despite the two sharing a name. The company has repeatedly clarified on social media that the politician is not connected to the Perdue brand. While David Perdue is the cousin of former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, he is not related to the Perdue family that owns and runs Perdue Chicken. The politician's fortune appears to be self-made, although he may have inherited some wealth from his parents or other relatives.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Is David Perdue part of the Perdue chicken empire? | No, he is not related to the Perdues who started the national chicken company. |
| David Perdue's net worth | $50 million |
| David Perdue's parents' profession | Schoolteachers |
| David Perdue's cousin | Sonny Perdue, former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture |
| David Perdue's cousin Sonny Perdue's relation to Perdue chicken empire | None |
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What You'll Learn
David Perdue's wealth is self-made
While Georgia politician David Perdue has a fortune, it is not the Perdue chicken fortune. Perdue's wealth appears to be self-made, although he may have inherited some money from his parents or other relatives. After graduating from Georgia Tech, he worked as a management consultant at Kurt Salmon Associates and earned a master's degree in operational research. In the 1990s, he worked for an international clothing company in Singapore, which likely helped him secure the position of SVP overseeing Asia Operations at Sara Lee in 1992. In 2014, Perdue ran for Senate, citing his successful business career. Despite not inheriting a poultry fortune, Perdue reported a net worth of about $50 million in his financial disclosures.
Perdue Chicken is headquartered in Salisbury, Maryland and was founded by Arthur Perdue in 1920. The company has been handed down through the family and is currently one of the largest chicken product producers in the United States. The Perdue Farms Perdues are primarily based in Maryland, where the company was founded and remains headquartered. The company was founded by Arthur Perdue, who passed it to his son Frank in the 1950s. Frank then passed it to his son, the current chairman, Jim Perdue. The CEO, Randy Day, is the first non-Perdue to helm the company.
Although Sen. Perdue is the cousin of U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, he has no relation to the Perdues who started the national chicken company. The Perdue brand is known for its family ownership and has featured family members in its advertising campaigns. In 1974, Frank Perdue introduced the PERDUE® OVEN STUFFER® Roaster, making Perdue the only company with its own proprietary breed. In the 1980s, Frank introduced the first PERDUE® fully cooked products and added turkey to its portfolio. In 2018, the company celebrated the 50th anniversary of the PERDUE® brand and announced goals for significant reductions in greenhouse gases, water use, and solid waste.
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Perdue Chicken is a family-owned business
Frank took what was his dad's egg business and created a fully integrated chicken company. By the 1980s, he had built one of the largest poultry producers in the nation and first appeared on the Forbes 400 in 1986 with a $200 million fortune. He retired in 1988, passing the torch to his son, Jim.
Perdue Chicken is headquartered in Salisbury, Maryland, where the company was founded and where its headquarters remain today. The company has a long history of family ownership and management, with the fourth generation of Perdues now working in the business. Chris and Ryan Perdue, for example, joined their father, Jim, in two commercials featuring Perdue Harvestland organic chicken.
Despite the similarity in names, Perdue Chicken has no affiliation with Georgia Sen. David Perdue. The company has clarified on multiple occasions that the senator is not related to the Perdue family that owns the chicken company. In 2020, social media users called for a boycott of Perdue Chicken, believing that it was associated with Sen. David Perdue due to his controversial comments about Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris. However, the company quickly responded to these calls, stating that David Perdue has no connection to their brand.
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The company responded to boycott threats
In 2020, social media users called for a boycott of Perdue Chicken, believing the company was connected to Georgia Senator David Perdue. This came after the senator appeared to mispronounce the name of Kamala Harris, Democratic vice-presidential nominee, at a rally for President Donald Trump. The senator's comments were labelled "incredibly racist" by Harris' spokesperson Sabrina Singh, and Andrew Bates, spokesman for Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, said Americans could do "so much better" than David Perdue.
The Perdue chicken company responded swiftly to the boycott calls, clarifying that David Perdue has no affiliation with the brand. On Twitter, the company tweeted multiple times: "David Perdue has no affiliation with our Perdue brand". The company's efforts were noticed by some on Twitter, who saw that many of Perdue Chicken's tweets were signed by an individual named Eliza, and the phrase "Poor Eliza" began to circulate.
Perdue Chicken is headquartered in Salisbury, Maryland, and was founded by Arthur Perdue in 1920. Since then, the company has been passed down through the family and is now one of the largest chicken product producers in the United States. The current chairman is Jim Perdue, the third generation of the Perdue family to lead the company.
The Perdue company has faced other controversies in recent years, including a 2014 scandal when a video emerged showing poor conditions at a Perdue farm. Perdue responded by stating that the issues were the result of a rogue farmer not following its specified guidelines. Despite this, the company has made efforts to improve animal welfare, introducing the first nationally distributed chicken nuggets blended with vegetables and announcing goals for significant reductions in greenhouse gases, water use, and solid waste.
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David Perdue mispronounces Kamala Harris' name
While Georgia Senator David Perdue is indeed part of the Perdue family, he is not related to the family behind the Perdue chicken empire. The senator's fortune appears to be self-made, although he may have inherited some of it from his parents or other relatives.
Now, onto the topic at hand: David Perdue mispronouncing Kamala Harris's name. At a rally for President Donald Trump in Macon, Georgia, on Friday, October 16, 2020, Perdue, a Georgia Republican, mocked his Senate colleague and the Democratic vice-presidential nominee, Kamala Harris, by repeatedly mispronouncing her name. Perdue referred to Harris as "KAH'-mah-lah? Kah-MAH'-lah? Kamala-mala-mala? I don't know. Whatever." The audience laughed at the mispronunciations.
A spokesperson for Perdue, Casey Black, stated that the senator "simply mispronounced Sen. Harris' name" and "didn't mean anything by it." Black added that Perdue "was making an argument against the radical socialist agenda that she & her endorsed candidate Jon Ossoff are pushing." However, Harris' spokesperson, Sabrina Singh, called out Perdue's remark in a tweet, saying, "Well, that is incredibly racist. Vote him out." In a second tweet, she emphasized that Perdue had been Harris' Senate colleague for over three years and told him to "do better."
Jon Ossoff, Perdue's opponent in the November 2020 election, also tweeted about the incident, saying, "He mocked Sen. Harris' name. We are so much better than this."
This incident was not an isolated one. Harris' political opponents, including President Trump and Vice President Mike Pence, have repeatedly mispronounced her name since she became the first Black woman and the first person of South Asian descent on a national ticket. Democrats argue that these mispronunciations are racist. Harris herself pronounces her first name as "KAH’-mah-lah" or, as she explains in her biography, "'comma-la,' like the punctuation mark."
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David Perdue is the cousin of Sonny Perdue
Georgia politician David Perdue has no affiliation with Perdue Chicken, according to the company. The senator faced criticism in 2020 for mispronouncing Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris' name at a rally. In response, social media users called for a boycott of Perdue Chicken, believing the company was connected to the senator. Perdue Chicken clarified that David Perdue has no affiliation with their brand.
David Perdue is, however, the cousin of Sonny Perdue, who served as the US Secretary of Agriculture during the Trump administration. In 2014, David Perdue ran for the Senate, citing his successful business career. In the 1990s, he worked for an international clothing company in Singapore before becoming the SVP overseeing Asia Operations at Sara Lee in 1992. He also formed a global trading firm called Perdue Partners with his cousin Sonny. Despite his wealth, David Perdue's fortune appears to be self-made, although he may have inherited money from his parents or other relatives.
Perdue Chicken is a family-owned poultry company headquartered in Salisbury, Maryland, founded by Arthur Perdue in 1920. The company has been passed down through the generations and is currently one of the largest chicken product producers in the United States. The Perdue brand is known for its "no hormone" policy and for giving its chickens access to the outside. They have also introduced organic and vegetable-blended chicken products.
While David Perdue shares a name with the poultry company, he is not related to the Perdues who own Perdue Chicken. The senator's wealth is not derived from a poultry fortune, and he has no connection to the chicken empire beyond his cousin's position as Secretary of Agriculture.
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Frequently asked questions
No, Georgia politician David Perdue is not related to the Perdue chicken family.
Perdue Chicken is a fourth-generation, family-owned poultry company. It was founded by Arthur Perdue in 1920 and is currently headquartered in Salisbury, Maryland.
David Perdue is a former U.S. Senator and Georgia gubernatorial candidate. He is also the cousin of U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue.
In 2020, Senator David Perdue faced criticism for mispronouncing Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris' name at a rally for President Donald Trump. This led to accusations of racism and calls for a boycott of Perdue Chicken, with many believing the company was connected to the senator.
Yes, Perdue Chicken is still owned and run by the Perdue family. Randy Day, the current CEO, is the first non-Perdue family member to helm the company.
