Companies Seneca Foods
Seneca Foods (SENEA): executive pay, fiscal 2026
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CEO pay, last three years
- $1,195,063FY2024
- $1,012,423FY2025
- $1,304,968FY2026
CEO total pay was $1,304,968 in fiscal 2026, up from $1,012,423 in fiscal 2025.
FY2026: salary $804,583 · bonus $0 · stock awards $0 · option awards $0
Executives and directors
Full detail
Every table from the filing. Open any section.
Summary compensation table
| Named executive officer | Salary | Bonus | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Pension / NQDC | All other | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paul Palmby | $804,583 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $402,291 | $81,139 | $16,955 | $1,304,968 |
| President and Chief Executive Officer | ||||||||
| Dean Erstad | 345,149 | 0 | 25,000 | 0 | 172,575 | 92,431 | 9,187 | 644,342 |
| Senior Vice President | ||||||||
| Timothy Nelson | 349,855 | 0 | 25,000 | 0 | 174,928 | 78,413 | 9,185 | 637,381 |
| Senior Vice President of Operations, Chief Operating Officer | ||||||||
| Michael Wolcott | 338,184 | 0 | 25,000 | 0 | 169,092 | 10,455 | 4,004 | 546,735 |
| Chief Financial Officer | ||||||||
A dash means the company reported no figure in that column; 0 means it reported zero. Figures are as printed in the filing, without adjustment.
Three-year trend — total compensation per named executive
| Named executive officer | FY2026 total | FY2025 total | FY2024 total | Δ FY2025→2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paul Palmby | $1,304,968 | $1,012,423 | $1,195,063 | ↑ +292,545 |
| Dean Erstad | 644,342 | 514,107 | 586,504 | ↑ +130,235 |
| Timothy Nelson | 637,381 | 514,744 | 598,311 | ↑ +122,637 |
| Michael Wolcott | 546,735 | 427,546 | 499,632 | ↑ +119,189 |
Prior-year totals as disclosed in the corresponding proxy; deltas are computed values with the derivation shown in the register.
Incentive-plan design — the Compensation Discussion & Analysis
The Company's compensation philosophy is to value the contribution of employees and share profits through broad-based incentive arrangements designed to reward performance and motivate collective achievement of strategic objectives. The primary objectives are to attract and retain highly-qualified executives, motivate them to achieve business objectives, reward individual and collective contributions, and align their interests with the long-term interests of shareholders.
| CEO STI target (% of salary) | — |
|---|---|
| CEO LTI target (% of salary) | — |
| Independent consultant | — |
| Clawback policy | true |
| Anti-hedging | false |
| Anti-pledging | false |
Equity grants and outstanding awards
Grants of plan-based awards — fiscal year 2026
| Executive | Award | Grant date | Threshold | Target | Granted | Maximum | Grant-date fair value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Timothy R. Nelson | RSU | 2025-08-07 | — | — | 243 | — | $25,000 |
| Michael Wolcott | RSU | 2025-08-07 | — | — | 243 | — | 25,000 |
| Dean Erstad | RSU | 2025-08-07 | — | — | 243 | — | 25,000 |
Vehicle mix — grant-date fair value by award type
| Named executive officer | Time-vested (RSU) | Performance-vested (PSU) | Options / SARs | % performance-vested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Timothy R. Nelson | $25,000 | $0 | $0 | 0.0% |
| Michael Wolcott | 25,000 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Dean Erstad | 25,000 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
% performance-vested = PSU grant-date fair value ÷ (RSU + PSU + Options), a computed value with the derivation shown in the register.
Outstanding equity awards at fiscal year-end 2026
| Executive | Award | Shares unvested | Exercise price | Market value unvested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Wolcott | RSU | 869 | — | $131,323 |
| Nelson | RSU | 980 | — | 148,098 |
| Dean Erstad | RSU | 980 | — | 148,098 |
Director compensation
| Director | Cash fees | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | All other | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paul L. PalmbyEmployee director | — | — | — | — | — | $0 |
| Bruce E. WareIndependent · Audit · Corporate Governance and Nominating | 80,000 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Kraig H. KayserIndependent · Board Chair | 80,000 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Peter R. CallNot independent | 80,000 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Kathryn J. BoorIndependent · Compensation · Corporate Governance and Nominating (Chair) | 80,000 | — | — | — | — | — |
| John P. GaylordIndependent · Compensation (Chair) · Corporate Governance and Nominating | 80,000 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Donald J. StuartIndependent | 80,000 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Keith A. WoodwardIndependent · Audit (Chair) · Compensation | 80,000 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Linda K. NelsonIndependent · Audit | 80,000 | — | — | — | — | — |
Board fee structure and ownership guideline
| Annual cash retainer | $20,000 |
|---|---|
| Annual equity retainer | — |
| Per board meeting fee | — |
| Committee chair fees (audit / comp / nom-gov) | — |
| Stock ownership guideline | — |
Total cost of the board
| Component | FY2026 |
|---|---|
| Cash retainers and fees | $640,000 |
| Equity awards (grant-date value) | $0 |
| All other compensation | $0 |
| Total cost of the board | $640,000 |
Computed as the sum of the director compensation table rows above; inputs and formula shown in the register.
Peer group, and who names Seneca Foods as a peer
Companies that benchmark against SENEA
4 companies name SENEA as a compensation peer
- BEYOND MEAT, INC.BYNDFY2025
- NATIONAL PRESTO INDUSTRIES INCNPKFY2025
- SANFILIPPO JOHN B & SON INCJBSSFY2026
- UNIVERSAL CORP /VA/UVVFY2026
Each company listed discloses SENEA in its own benchmarking peer group, as disclosed in each company's most recent proxy statement within the last two proxy seasons. Two companies are therefore absent by design: one that named SENEA in an earlier year and no longer does, and one whose own most recent disclosure is older than the last two seasons.
Chief executive pay against the peer group
Most recent fiscal-year chief executive compensation at each disclosed peer, taken from that company’s own proxy statement.
| Rank | Company | FY | Chief executive | Salary | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Seneca Foods | 2026 | Paul Palmby | $804,583 | $0 | $0 | $402,291 | $1,304,968 |
Each peer’s compensation is from its most recently filed proxy; fiscal years differ by company. Each peer’s figures come from its own filings; the subject company is highlighted. Peers whose chief executive compensation is outside our coverage universe are stated as such, never left blank.
Say-on-pay history and pay ratio
| Meeting year | Meeting date | For | Against | Abstain | Support | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2026-08-06 | 2,039,835 | 14,463 | 4,036 | 99.3% | Passed |
| 2023 | 2023-08-09 | 2,323,797 | 9,680 | 6,071 | 99.59% | Passed |
| 2021 | 2021-08-11 | 2,889,993 | 378 | 931 | 99.99% | Passed |
| 2020 | 2020-08-18 | 2,589,357 | 4,324 | 5,575 | 99.83% | Passed |
Rows are labeled by annual-meeting year, with the meeting date beside each; the vote held in a given year acts on the prior fiscal year’s compensation.
Say-on-pay — history, company’s computation
| Meeting year | Meeting date | Approval — company’s computation |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2026-08-06 | 99.3%a |
| 2023 | 2023-08-09 | 99.59%b |
| 2021 | 2021-08-11 | 99.99%c |
a. Voting standard not stated in the filing.
b. Voting standard not stated in the filing.
c. Voting standard not stated in the filing.
Approval percentages are the company’s own reported computations under its own stated standard, not recomputed by Velarion. Where a company does not state a standard, none is assumed.
CEO pay ratio
| Ratio (CEO : median employee) | 16 : 1 |
|---|---|
| CEO total compensation | $1,304,968 |
| Median employee compensation | $80,235 |
Insider trades since the proxy
No insider equity transactions reported since the proxy statement.
Sources (24 citations)
Each figure is listed with the filing it comes from, where it appears in that filing, and the value as printed. Any figure can be independently confirmed against the source.
- Section 01, Paul Palmby. DEF 14A, filed 2026-07-07. Section “Summary Compensation Table” · page 14. As printed: 1,304,968. View filing ↗
- Section 01, Dean Erstad. DEF 14A, filed 2026-07-07. Section “Summary Compensation Table” · page 14. As printed: 644,342. View filing ↗
- Section 01, Timothy Nelson. DEF 14A, filed 2026-07-07. Section “Summary Compensation Table” · page 14. As printed: 637,381. View filing ↗
- Section 01, Michael Wolcott. DEF 14A, filed 2026-07-07. Section “Summary Compensation Table” · page 14. As printed: 546,735. View filing ↗
- Section 03, Timothy R. Nelson RSU. DEF 14A, filed 2026-07-07. Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards in Fiscal Year 2026” · grants of plan-based awards table. View filing ↗
- Section 03, Michael Wolcott RSU. DEF 14A, filed 2026-07-07. Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards in Fiscal Year 2026” · grants of plan-based awards table. View filing ↗
- Section 03, Dean Erstad RSU. DEF 14A, filed 2026-07-07. Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards in Fiscal Year 2026” · grants of plan-based awards table. View filing ↗
- Section 07, pay ratio. DEF 14A, filed 2026-07-07. Section “CEO Pay Ratio”. As printed: 16 : 1. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Paul L. Palmby. DEF 14A, filed 2026-07-07. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 0. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Bruce E. Ware. DEF 14A, filed 2026-07-07. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: —. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Kraig H. Kayser. DEF 14A, filed 2026-07-07. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: —. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Peter R. Call. DEF 14A, filed 2026-07-07. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: —. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Kathryn J. Boor. DEF 14A, filed 2026-07-07. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: —. View filing ↗
- Section 08, John P. Gaylord. DEF 14A, filed 2026-07-07. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: —. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Donald J. Stuart. DEF 14A, filed 2026-07-07. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: —. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Keith A. Woodward. DEF 14A, filed 2026-07-07. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: —. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Linda K. Nelson. DEF 14A, filed 2026-07-07. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: —. View filing ↗
- Section 06, 2026 vote. Form 8-K, filed 2026-08-11. Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 99.3% (votes for as printed: 2,039,835). View filing ↗
- Section 06, 2023 vote. Form 8-K, filed 2023-08-14. Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 99.59% (votes for as printed: 2,323,797). View filing ↗
- Section 06, 2021 vote. Form 8-K, filed 2021-08-11. Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 99.99% (votes for as printed: 2,889,993). View filing ↗
- Section 01 trend, Δ column (computed). Computed. Δ = current-FY total − prior-FY total per named officer.
- Section 03b vehicle mix (computed). Computed. RSU / PSU / Options grant-date fair values summed per officer from the grants table; % performance-vested = PSU ÷ (RSU+PSU+Options).
- Section 09b board cost (computed). Computed. Cash 640,000 + equity 0 + all other 0 = 640,000, summed across the director compensation table rows.
- Seneca Foods (subject), Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-07-07. CEO total compensation as printed in Seneca Foods's own proxy. As printed: 1,304,968. View filing ↗
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