Murphy-Brown LLC, a division of Smithfield Foods, is “reducing its hog farming operations” across the state and “must reduce its workforce accordingly,” the company said in the notice, which affects salaried and hourly workers.
The U.S. meat industry has struggled with declining profits and reduced demand from consumers squeezed by inflation and higher interest rates. Amid spiraling feed and labor costs, meat companies have struggled to predict demand for their products.
The notice to the state’s Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development, dated Aug. 2, identified 35 hog farm operation sites. They included 13 sites in Newtown, Missouri; 12 in Lucerne, Missouri; and 10 in Princeton, Missouri.
https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSL1N39O2E6