Smithfield to close second shift

American pork producer Smithfield Foods is to temporarily shut down its second hog processing shift at its John Morrell pork plant in Sioux City, Iowa, from 19 February and will temporarily lay off about 485 workers from that shift. The action was blamed on "unfavourable market conditions".

"We hope to resume second-shift operations when market conditions become more favorable," Joseph Sebring, president of John Morrell & Co, said in a statement.

Supplies of market-ready hogs have been somewhat tight this winter and livestock dealers said the shortage was due in part to pig deaths related to circovirus.

The Sioux City plant will slaughter about 7,000 hogs a day when the second shift is shut down. That is about half of its daily production, according to industry data.

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