Source:  Rita Jane Gabbett, MEATINGPLACE.COM, 1/31/11

Smithfield Foods’ Smithfield Packaging Company will close a small production facility in Smithfield, Va., in March that employs 53 workers, according to the Newport News, Va.-based Daily Press.

A mandatory notice posted to a state website said the plant will close on March 26. Jeff Gough, Smithfield's vice president of human resources, told the Daily Press that plant workers were notified last week.

The plant, called the Ham and Products facility, produces soups, stews, barbecue products and cooked ribs. Products made at the plant will either be outsourced to other companies or moved to other Smithfield Foods locations, the newspaper reported.

Employees will have the opportunity to apply for other jobs within the company, Gough said. "I think there will be jobs available for all those who apply," he told the Daily Press.

Smithfield officials could not be reached to comment on the newspaper report.  

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