Smithfield changes its retail focus

US firm Smithfield Foods is to rely less on hogs and lower-margin fresh pork products and more on packaged meats under brands such as Armour, Eckrich and Farmland, the company has announced, in a change to its main focus.

CEO C. Larry Pope said: “We’re on the cusp of changing who this company is and how Wall Street sees Smithfield. We are emerging as a global leader in the packaged-meats business.”

The move by Smithfield is part of a restructuring effort aimed at reducing its hog herd and consolidating or closing existing meat plants.

In June, Smithfield announced its first fiscal-year loss in more than 30 years, largely due to losses on hogs, and last week the company reported a wider first-quarter loss than a year earlier, in part due to lower domestic hog prices.

Pope added: “Our restructuring plan has not yet hit the bottom line, but it is ready. We are looking more like a consumer packaged goods company than we are an agribusiness player.”

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