With Smithfield Deal, China Expands Its American Pork Pipeline

Announcing his company’s $4.7 billion acquisition by China’s largest pork producer, Smithfield Foods‘s chief executive used the moment to stress how the deal is designed to send more American pork to Asia, a boost for U.S. farmers. In other words: Relax. Shuanghui International Holdings won’t be sending Chinese pigs to your local Kroger store.

“People have this belief … that everything in America is made in China,” Smithfield President and CEO Larry Pope said on a conference call today. “I like to tell people, ‘Open your refrigerator door, look inside.’ Nothing in there is made in China, because American agriculture is the most competitive and efficient in the world. This is the one place America can absolutely compete. This is exporting America to the world.”