John Morrell to Close Sioux City Plant

CINCINNATIJohn Morrell & Co., a subsidiary of Smithfield Foods, Inc., will permanently close its hog processing and fresh meat fabrication plant located in Sioux City, Iowa, effective April 20, 2010.

The closure of the Sioux City plant, which processes hogs and produces boneless loins and other fresh pork products, will affect approximately 1,450 hourly and salaried employees. The company will confer with union officials regarding this transition.

"The consistent quality of our products is extremely important and is a daily priority. We are constantly improving our facilities and equipment to ensure a safer, higher-quality product. In this case, the Sioux City plant was constructed in 1959 and would require significant capital expenditures to outfit it with the next generation of pork processing technology. In this adverse business environment those capital needs simply cannot be met," said Joseph B. Sebring, president of John Morrell.

The companys three other Smithfield plants located in Sioux Falls, S.D.; Denison, Iowa; and Crete, Neb.; have the capacity to partially absorb the number of hogs currently processed at Sioux City and that it will transfer some of the Sioux City production to those plants in the near term. This partial transfer of production capacity will not require the company to secure additional employees. In addition, the company stated that it will honor all production contracts at Sioux City and that Smithfield has no further plans for plant closures in the foreseeable future.