Tyson Will Sell Pork Unit to Smithfield

Tyson Foods Inc. will sell its pork unit to Smithfield Foods Inc., the nation’s largest hog producer, as part of its effort to shed smaller food units and focus on poultry. Tyson will receive 3 million Smithfield shares in the sale, which is expected to be completed on or about Jan. 2. Based on Smithfield’s closing stock price of $25.81 on Tuesday, the transaction is valued at about $77.4 million. Smithfield has bought or agreed to buy seven other pork processors and hog producers in Europe and North America in the last year. The Smithfield, Va.-based company had $3.77 billion in sales in fiscal 1999. With Tyson’s pork unit and the closing of the Murphy Farms acquisition, Smithfield would account for about 13% of the hogs slaughtered in the U.S. Springdale, Ark.-based Tyson rose 94 cents to close at $15.94, and Smithfield closed up 63 cents at $26.44, both on the NYSE.