We never knowingly hire anyone who is not authorized to work in the U.S. We do everything that the law requires in confirming our employees’ work authorization, and, in fact, we go even further. Smithfield Foods is enrolled in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s voluntary E-Verify program. E-Verify provides an automated link to federal databases to help enrolled employers confirm the employment authorization of new hires. However, we and other employers face significant challenges in determining whether employees are authorized to work in the U.S. That’s due to identity theft and readily available, high-quality forged identification documents that allow undocumented workers to thwart even the best hiring practices and skirt the laws. We have many legal immigrants among our employees, and they all work very hard as a team to provide our customers and consumers with safe, nutritious, high-quality food. We find that immigrants have brought a richness and diversity to our local communities, and we’re always eager to provide additional job opportunities for workers who can demonstrate they are in this country legally. In that regard, we rely on state and federal programs to help us verify the legal status of potential employees. We support U.S. immigration policy reform measures that would enhance job opportunities for legal workers.

—Stewart Leeth, Assistant Vice President, Environmental and Corporate Affairs and Senior Counsel

Animex is one of our International subsidiaries. You can find more information on this part of our company under the "Our Companies" section of this website.

—Kathleen Kirkham, Sustainability Coordinator

Hi Frank. Thanks for your question. You can find our December 2012 update under "On Our Farms" in the Animal Care section of this site. The page is called "Housing of Pregnant Sows."

—Kathleen Kirkham, Sustainability Coordinator

Caring for our animals is one of the most important things we do here at Smithfield. Beyond being the right thing to do, taking care of our animals ensures we have high-quality, safe products to sell to our customers. One of the first criteria of the “Animal Welfare Approved” standard is that animals be raised on pasture. While multiple types of farming methods have merit, we feel that enclosed buildings are better suited to care for our animals as they best protect our pigs from predators, weather, and disease.

—Dennis H. Treacy, Executive Vice President, Corporate Affairs, and Chief Sustainability Officer

To learn more about what we feed our animals, I encourage you to check out our “Feeding Our Hogs” video. It will give you an in-depth explanation about our entire feed process.

As to questions about “Food, Inc.,” the movie is filled with harmful myths about the U.S.food industry and Smithfield Foods and makes us out to be evil and sinister. Much of what is said about our company is simply untrue. The modern meat industry is a marvel. Smithfield strives to feed the world in a socially responsible manner. Yes, it’s hard work, but our workers are very proud of what they do to produce safe, wholesome food for dinner tables around the world. 

If you are interested in the other side of the story, our company has developed responsible programs to protect the health of our animals, the safety of our employees and the quality of the food we produce. These programs are highlighted on this site and our YouTube channel. We are committed to protecting our employees’ health and safety, and we strive to create a fair and ethical workplace.  We provide good jobs that require solid skills and hard work. In terms of our animals, we have three goals when it comes to their care: for them to be safe, comfortable and healthy. And that commitment, in turn, promotes the production of safe, high-quality food.

If you were to visit the many communities where we operate, you’d find that the majority of our neighbors like having us there. That’s because we’ve shown them that we take our responsibilities very seriously, and we provide a source of income in communities where employment opportunities are scarce. We feel we have a moral obligation to be the best possible corporate citizen. If you would like information about particular claims made in the movie, please send us an email at csr@smithfieldfoods.com.

—Dennis H. Treacy, Executive Vice President, Corporate Affairs, and Chief Sustainability Officer

Thank you for reaching out to us. It is definitely important to maintain a balanced, healthy diet every day, but meat plays an important role in achieving just that. It offers valuable nutrients including protein, iron, and zinc as well as B vitamins and essential fatty acids that are difficult to compensate for with non-meat alternatives. That's why meat is included as an important part of the new "Food Plate" that recently replaced the traditional food pyramid. At Smithfield, we are constantly striving to improve our processes and become more resource-efficient. We’ve come quite a long way but we truly believe there is always further progress to be made. Feel free to ask us more about our sustainable practices or you can also browse how we’re becoming a better environmental partner here.

—Dennis H. Treacy, Executive Vice President, Corporate Affairs, and Chief Sustainability Officer

We have led the U.S. Pork industry by switching to a procedure known as CO2 anesthetizing. This process allows the pigs to move slowly and in small groups, which reduces stress for animals and their handlers.    

—Dennis H. Treacy, Executive Vice President, Corporate Affairs, and Chief Sustainability Officer

Finding the right balance between all the factors you mention is a hard task, and a struggle that every business wrestles with. The good thing is that our social responsibility programs actually save us money--through operational efficiencies, energy savings, employee retention, healthier animals, and other advantages inherent to simply doing what's right.   

—Dennis H. Treacy, Executive Vice President, Corporate Affairs, and Chief Sustainability Officer

As a general rule, we’ve found that any food that includes both salt and fat is going to be incredibly delicious. But in bacon’s case, to find out why it’s so good we need to talk chemistry. Basically, when amino acids and sugars live side by side and you apply heat to them, it causes a chemical reaction that has been dubbed the “Maillard reaction.” It’s what causes meat to turn brown as you heat it. One of the nifty side effects of this reaction is that it not only changes the color of the meat, but changes the flavor as well, giving it the savory taste we all love. So next time you’re enjoying a slice of bacon, make sure to think of Louis-Camille Maillard, who was the first to study this wonderful phenomenon in the early 1900s.

—Kathleen Kirkham, Sustainability Coordinator

Thanks for your question. You can find our response to the HSUS SEC filing at smithfieldcommitments.com/whats-happening-now.

—Dennis H. Treacy, Executive Vice President, Corporate Affairs, and Chief Sustainability Officer