Source: Rita Jane Gabbett, MEATINGPLACE, 10/14/16


Smithfield Foods on Thursday said none of its hog waste lagoons have failed so far in the wake of historic flooding from Hurricane Matthew. The company also said some of its North Carolina plants may not be back up to full capacity until next week.

“As of Thursday afternoon, we had no reports of our farms suffering a breach or a lagoon failure. We have one report of floodwaters rising into the lagoon at one of our contract farms. We continue to monitor reports from on the ground and aerial observation,” according to a company statement. 

On Wednesday, The Atlantic quoted Travis Graves of Sound Rivers, an environmental nonprofit in North Carolina, saying he has seen a couple lagoons breached on aerial flights near the Neuse River. The article did not indicate who owned those lagoons. Fecal waste lagoons have breached during some previous floods in the state, including in 1999, when Hurricane Floyd dumped 19 inches of rain on North Carolina.

As reported earlier, none of Smithfield’s processing plants in North Carolina or Virginia suffered substantive damage, but flooding is making the movement of hogs and employees difficult.

Facilities are still working at a reduced rate in North Carolina. “We anticipate resuming full production next week,” the company predicted in its statement.

The company also reiterated, “This remains a serious, life-threatening situation, and our top priorities continue to be the safety and well-being of our employees and the care of our animals.”

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