Smithfield Foods
Line
- Joseph W. Luter III, chairman
- C. Larry Pope, CEO
Smithfield Foods, Inc. is the world's largest pig breeding and pork processing company with its headquarters in Virginia.
Company data
The multinational company produces annually 14 million piglets and processes 27 million pigs to various meat products. 2006 this was 2.7 million tonnes of pork and 635,000 tonnes of fresh beef, which were marketed under brand names such as Smithfield, Butterball, John Morrell, Gwaltney, Patrick Cudahy, Krakus, Cook's Ham, and Stefano's. Smithfield has offices in 26 U.S. states and 9 countries.
As of April 2006, the Smithfield Group has a total of about 52,500 employees, including 22,500 in accordance with collective agreements. In the Smithfield pig farms about 18,000 of a total of about 31,800 employees are unionized (equivalent to approximately 56%). State authorities in the U.S. have found that Smithfield systematically violated rights of workers.
One of the biggest main competitors include Cargill, Tyson Foods and JBS Swift Group.
History
The company's origins lie in the today's largest subsidiary of Smithfield Packing Company. This company was founded by Joseph W. Luter and his son Joseph W. Luter Jr. 1936. Office of the company was the city Smithfield on Pagan River, a tributary of the James River in Isle of Wight County, Virginia, USA. Since taking over the company management by Joseph W. Luter III in 1964, was created by several acquisitions, including of Farmland Foods and Eckrich, the current Group. In September 2006, Smithfield Foods agreed a merger with Premium Standard Farms, but this is still subject to the approval from the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.
The Smithfield Packing Company operates in Tar Heel, North Carolina, since 1992 the largest slaughterhouse in the world. Chief of this largest subsidiary since 2004 Joseph W. Luter IV, who had previously "executive vice president " of the parent company.
Smithfield Foods has already received several awards, including above average socially responsible company and as a meat processor of 2006. Fortune magazine has included Smithfield four consecutive years in its annual list of Most Admired Companies in America and runs it in the " Fortune 500 " list of the largest American companies.
In early March 2008, the company announced that it will sell previously based in Green Bay, at JBS for 565 million U.S. dollars in cash its beef division Smithfield Beef Group Inc. (SBG ).
In October 2008, the merger of Campofrio Alimentación, SA was approved by the Groupe Smithfield to Campofrío Food Group. Due to funding problems and the difficult economic situation in Europe, Smithfield was the merger in June 2011 burst.
On 29 May 2013, the Chinese Shuanghui International Holdings Ltd. was. announced an agreement to take over in the way of a merger Smithfield Foods for 4.7 billion U.S. dollars. Shuanghui International Ltd.. is the majority shareholder of Henan Shuanghui Investment & Development Co., the largest meat processing company in the People's Republic of China ( major brand: Shineway ). The end of September 2013, the Smithfield was acquired for seven billion dollars of Shuanghui. The now around 100,000 employees will produce annually to the six billion pounds of pork.
Early 2014 concluded Shanghui an agreement with the Mexican food manufacturer Sigma Alimentos on a temporary financial contribution to the indirect acquisition of Campofrío by Sigma by Smithfield Foods.
Brands
Smithfield Foods is now also represented on the European market ( for example, there has, since 2006, Sara Lee Foods Europe, whose brands include, amongst others " Aosta ", and the Weight Watchers brand in cooked meat products), has subsidiaries and investments in Germany, Romania, France, England, Poland and Spain. Other brands of Smithfield Foods in Europe include: Morliny, PEK, Smithfield Authentic Deli, Krakus, Yano, Constar, Animex, Mazury, Agryf, Suwalki, Ekodrob, Tygryski, Morlinki, Berlinki, Comtim, Campofrío.
Smithfield goal here, to operate the entire value chain of meat production, so fattening, slaughtering and further processing into meat products themselves.
Criticism
Smithfield is criticized for its environmental policy, as there are huge manure or Fakälienspeicher built at its facilities, without subjecting these substances to further treatment. In addition, sets Smithfield, like its competitors, to the industrial breeding and slaughtering of animals. Independent monitoring of the living conditions of these animals do not take place; Animal rights activists documented regular gross mistreatment and degrading housing conditions.