We value a work environment that works for everyone.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Fostering a Diverse and Inclusive Culture

Smithfield is committed to ensuring a diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace and a culture that respects every employee. We also seek to promote equity across our business and in our communities.

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Our Diversity Statement

"Good food. Responsibly.®" Means a Commitment to Diversity
Smithfield understands that our customers, employees and suppliers are critical to our success as a global food company. Smithfield is committed to partnering with customers. employees and suppliers of diverse backgrounds and geographic locations and to conduct our business in an ethical and inclusive way. Our global perspective and commitment to inclusion are central to our mission to produce "Good food. Responsibly.®" and ultimately maximize shareholder value.

Customers
Smithfield is always seeking new markets for our products. We continually strive to reach out to a diverse customer base and produce good food that will be enjoyed by families across the globe. Our new initiatives include product development, marketing and advertising with diverse media outlets, sponsorships and forming successful partnerships with key influencers. 

Employees
Smithfield is committed to attracting, training and maintaining a diverse workforce that is reflective of the marketplace. We strive to implement a companty culture that is inclusive, positive and performance-oriented.
We are committed to fostering an environment that enables our people to capitalize on the diverse skills, perspectives, and experiences they bring to Smithfield each and every day.”
- Ron Toran, Director, Diversity, Culture & Engagement

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

At Smithfield Foods, “good” doesn’t stop with our products – it’s in everything we do. From our Operational Leadership Program that develops diverse candidates for management positions to our $15 million commitment to further diversity, equity and inclusion in food manufacturing and agriculture – we’re making good strides toward a more inclusive society.

Our Goals And Targets

Our commitments to DEI:
Fund education programs that provide access to quality education and bridge divides in communities.
On Track
Further diversify our Smithfield Foods Scholarship Program to include additional historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs).
On Track
Increase production facility spend with minority-owned businesses by 14% to achieve a more inclusive supply chain by 2025.
On Track
By 2030, increase the racial and gender diversity of our leadership team by promoting and hiring: • Black, Hispanic and other underrepresented groups to reflect at least 30% of supervisors and above. • Female leaders to represent at least 35% of supervisors and above.
On Track
Maintain a minority contract grower program to increase the diversity of hog suppliers within our agricultural supply chain.
On Track
Maintain Operation Leadership Program (OLP).
On Track



Helping Our Heroes

Smithfield has a longstanding tradition of honoring the service and sacrifice of American veterans and their families. We’re committed to supporting the community and family support systems veterans rely on, including through veteran employment and career development. 

Unity & Action


As a standalone pillar of our sustainability program, we have established aggressive DEI goals and targets that we report on our progress toward achieving annually.


Within this pillar, our “Unity & Action” platform represents a $15 million commitment to further diversity, equity and inclusion in food manufacturing, agriculture and education.


Mindful that actions speak louder than words, we encourage you to see below for a comprehensive summary of the initiatives we have launched to support “Unity & Action” across our business.

From 1978-2000 in North Carolina we lost 67% of our Black farmers. From that same period we lost 70% of our land. That's 400,000 acres.
- Archie Hart, Special Assistant, N.C. Department of Agriculture
Read Smithfield's Unity & Action Announcement

MINORITY FARMER INITIATIVE

According to the United States Department of Agriculture, minority farmers represent just 5% of farmers in America; less than 2% identify as Black.  We have established a contract grower program to support Black and minority farmers and diversify our hog supply chain. This innovative initiative will help us build a stronger agricultural future that encompasses a broader range of perspectives and backgrounds in our work to feed the world.



EDUCATION & CAREER DEVELOPMENT

We are investing in the professional development of our team members through our new Operations Leadership Program (OLP), designed to create a robust pipeline of diverse candidates to fill future management positions. We also recently further diversified our Smithfield Foods Scholarship Program to be inclusive of additional historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) to continue to drive candidates into that pipeline.


Additionally, we instituted a Future Leaders Program that extends scholarship support and career opportunities to diverse rising seniors by way of a summer internship.



SUPPLY CHAIN INITIATIVES

We are committed to increasing our production facility spend with minority-owned businesses by 14% to achieve a more inclusive supply chain by 2025.



COMMUNITY OUTREACH

We have pledged financial support to the following partners to support access and DEI in education:


 

Download the 2021 Report

Download the report