Smithfield Foods Invests $100M in NC Pork Processing PlantSmithfield Foods Invests $100M in NC Pork Processing Plant
August 22, 2017

The world’s largest pork processor, Smithfield Foods Inc., is investing $100 million in its Tar Heel, NC pork plant to construct a new distribution center and improve the site’s cold storage capabilities, the Smithfield, VA-based firm announced Tuesday.
“This expansion reflects the promising era we’re experiencing at Smithfield,” said a statement by Kenneth M. Sullivan, the company’s president and chief executive officer. “It supports our continued growth and helps us better serve our customers by providing additional capacity and optimizing our distribution footprint.”
Smithfield plans to kick off the distribution center project in August, building a 500,000-sq-ft space that contains about 47,000 positions for pallets. The company said construction of the cold storage expansion is already in progress, and the move is expected to add about 140 million lbs to the site’s capacity.
250 jobs will be created through Smithfield’s investment when construction wraps up in the latter half of 2018, according to the firm's press release.
“At Smithfield, we’re constantly evaluating strategies to achieve greater operational efficiencies and make our supply chain more sustainable,” said senior vice president of supply chain and direct store delivery at Smithfield, Dennis Organ, in a statement. “This project will help us accomplish both goals while better serving our customers in the southeastern U.S.”
The company said its Tar Heel plant is the “largest pork processing plant in the world,” with its 5000-strong staff processing over 30,000 hogs each day.
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