American pork integrator Smithfield Foods has started a further 3% reduction of its sow inventory in the U.S. after announcing a net loss of $190.3 million for operations in fiscal year 2009. The loss is blamed on the effect of higher feed costs.
The company calculated that production costs per kilogram liveweight rose from the equivalent of $1.10 in fiscal 2008 to $1.37 in the past 12 months. Smithfield has already reduced its U.S. production by some 2 million slaughter pigs per year.
