Dive Brief:
- Smithfield Foods CEO C. Larry Pope has announced his retirement, and Kenneth M. Sullivan as been appointed as his successor, effective Dec. 31.
- During his 35 years at Smithfield, Pope oversaw the company's $4.73 billion takeover by Hong Kong-based WH Group Ltd. in 2013, China's largest food industry acquisition.
- Earlier this year, Sullivan was appointed to president and COO, and prior to those positions, he served in various roles within the company since joining Smithfield in 2003, including CFO, vice president of finance, and chief accounting officer.
Dive Insight:
"Ken is intimately familiar with the company’s operations and has worked closely with me in developing and executing our strategy and ‘One Smithfield’ initiative. I have the utmost confidence that Smithfield will continue to grow and thrive under Ken’s leadership," Pope said in a statement.
Sullivan takes the lead of Smithfield as the company saw a 46% drop in net income in the third quarter after a 27% decrease in profits the previous quarter.
"Sales in the company’s Fresh Pork segment retreated 16 percent to $1.21 billion compared to $1.44 billion in the third quarter of 2014. Results were partially offset by a 15 percent increase in volume," Meat + Poultry reported.
Smithfield and other pork companies like rival JBS have been struggling with lower profits as pork sales decline, which is partially due to an increase in the hog supply as the industry bounces back from the porcine epidemic. This has caused prices to fall, though in Smithfield's case, volume has offset some of that loss.