Smithfield Exceeds Grain Sustainability Goal

Smithfield Foods, Inc. has successfully engaged 80% of its grain supply chain, which is used to feed the company’s hogs, in farming practices that are both sustainable and reduce the cost of production for grain farmers.

This exceeded the company’s original goal of 75%. In 2018, Smithfield purchased grain from producers who use efficient fertilizer and soil health methods across approximately 560,000 acres of land.

Grain production is the first step in the vertically integrated company’s supply chain, making this accomplishment one of the key ways Smithfield is working toward its ambitious goal to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions 25% by 2025 throughout its entire supply chain – the first commitment of its kind from a protein company.

“This accomplishment is a significant milestone in our company’s holistic approach to reducing carbon emissions across our entire supply chain,” says Kenneth M. Sullivan, president and chief executive officer for Smithfield Foods. “It is important to note that it would not have been possible without the unified efforts of grain farmers, our company, Environmental Defense Fund, and other collaborative partners. This is an important achievement for everyone involved and for our environment.”

While fertilizer is an essential tool for agriculture, it can be a driver of crop-related GHG emissions. A study conducted in 2017 by the University of Minnesota’s NorthStar Initiative for Sustainable Enterprise, a Smithfield partner, estimated that grain accounted for 15-20% of the company’s carbon footprint.

为了减少谷物供应的环境影响，史密斯菲尔德与环境防御基金（EDF）合作，通过史密斯菲尔德农艺学计划（也称为Smithfieldgro）来帮助农民找到优化肥料使用和改善土壤健康的方法。该计划帮助数百个谷物供应商通过提供有效的肥料优化和土壤健康计划：

• 机上农艺师展示策略并提供自由农艺建议，使农民能够融合更有效的肥料实践。
• 使用降低价格的工具和计划，以帮助农民改善肥料的使用，作物生产，水质和土壤健康。
• Economic incentives to diversify crop production and create a market for winter wheat cover crops.

In conjunction with this announcement, EDF released a case study authored by Datu Research that describes Smithfield’s supply chain sustainability programs and the value they generate for the environment, farmers, and Smithfield itself. Within the case study, Datu provides detailed information about Smithfield’s efforts to improve grain farmers’ fertilizer management practices and soil health, as well as the company’s other sustainability initiatives, that were developed in partnership with EDF.

“Smithfield exceeded its grain sustainability goal in only five years. This milestone adds to the growing evidence that improved farming practices can simultaneously benefit farm finances, water quality, and wildlife habitat,” says David Festa, EDF senior vice president of Ecosystems. “Smithfield is an industry leader in tackling supply chain GHG emissions and making the agricultural system more climate resilient. We encourage other food companies and retailers to pursue similarly ambitious, measurable targets.”

除了努力帮助谷物农民种植更有生产力和可持续的农作物外，史密斯菲尔德（Smithfield）在2018年初与Anuvia®植物营养素合作，从公司的猪场肥料治疗系统收集的可再生生物学材料创造了可持续的肥料。Anuvia的肥料提供了更具控制氮的氮的好处，同时减少温室气体排放并产生较小的环境足迹。

Later in 2018, Smithfield announced the expansion of its “manure-to-energy” projects to further reduce its GHG emissions. These efforts transform hog manure into renewable natural gas through a refinement process that captures and upgrades biogas to natural gas that is then injected into nearby pipelines.

Smithfield announced the implementation of “manure-to-energy” projects across all its hog finishing spaces in Missouri and 90% of its hog finishing spaces in North Carolina, Utah, and Virginia via the nationwide expansion of Smithfield Renewables, the company’s platform dedicated to unifying and accelerating its carbon reduction and renewable energy efforts.

In Missouri, Smithfield is also reestablishing native grasslands, prairie, and milkweed to create habitat for monarch butterflies and provide biomass for methane generation in renewable natural gas projects.

有关Smithfield的行业领先可持续发展计划的更多信息，请访问Smithfieldfoods.com/environment.