The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) announced that Chief Operating Officer Jim Mulhern will take over as President & Chief Executive Officer on January 1, 2014. Mulhern has been appointed by the NMPF Board of Directors to fill the position held by Jerry Kozak since 1997. Earlier this year, Kozak had informed the Board of his desire to retire on December 31, 2013.

Mulhern joined NMPF in January 2013, and since that time has managed the communications, government relations, and membership functions of the organization. His appointment as COO marked a return to NMPF; he had directed the organization’s government relations program earlier in his career.

A Wisconsin native, Mulhern came to Washington, DC, to work on Capitol Hill in 1983. Following his service at NMPF in the mid-1980s, he returned to Capitol Hill to serve as Chief of Staff for Wisconsin Sen. Herb Kohl. Mulhern also worked in senior management positions for Fleishman-Hillard, the Fratelli Group and Watson/Mulhern LLC. During this period, he maintained a close relationship with the dairy industry and NMPF by working as a consultant on numerous projects.