SMITHFIELD, VA. — Smithfield Foods Inc. announced on Dec. 5 that it would end contracts with 26 hog farms in Utah.

The company stated that the decision was made to optimize its supply chain for more efficient operations in the face of industry oversupply of pork, weaker consumer demand and high feed prices.

“Our industry and company are experiencing historically challenging hog production market conditions,” said Shane Smith, president and chief executive officer of Smithfield Foods.

With the loss of contracts, Smithfield positions that support contract farm relationships will be eliminated. The pork producer plans to offer relocation opportunities for affected employees and provide transition assistance.

Smithfield stated that the company has yet to have an exact number, but the number of Smithfield positions eliminated may be up to one-third of the 210 employees in its Utah hog production operations.

“Smithfield continues to take steps to improve operational efficiency and optimize our hog supply chain,” Smith said. “These actions have included rebalancing production with East Coast harvest capacity, reducing our sow herd in Missouri and closing finishing operations in Utah. These are difficult decisions, but they are necessary to help our company remain competitive in this operating environment.”

In August, a Worker Adjustment Retraining Notification (WARN) posted by the state of Missouri showed that Murphy-Brown LLC, a division of Smithfield Foods Inc., plans to close 35 hog farms in Missouri.