Full Name
Mr. Kim Dirks
Job Title
Senior Director, Environmental
Company
Tyson Foods, Inc.
Speaker Bio
Kim is responsible for the Tyson Environmental Center of Excellence. These duties encompass support of all environmental media (air, waste, and water) aspects associated with company operations, Environmental Management System processes, remediation projects, environmental due diligence, management of environmental reserves, and interaction with regulatory agencies on current and developing issues. Kim supports Tyson’s sustainability water stewardship efforts; current projects in this space include developing contextual water target approaches for high-risk global Tyson Foods operations, improving wastewater and brine management processes, and research on direct potable reuse (DPR) of beef, pork, and poultry processing wastewater.

During his career at Tyson and IBP, Kim has held various environmental positions, provided oversight of Environmental, Health & Safety, Process Safety and Risk Management programs, and laboratory operations management. His industry experience spans beef, pork, leather, live swine, poultry, and prepared foods. Prior to joining IBP, Kim worked for both Wilson Foods and Farmstead Foods as a quality assurance inspector, chemist, and microbiologist. He has 41 years of industry experience.

Kim received his B.S.S. in Biology from Cornell College. He has been Chair of the North American Meat Institute Environmental Advisory Group, and the American Leather Chemists Environmental Committee.
Kim Dirks