Smithfield Foods to Build Waste-to-Energy Facility
$20 Million Biodiesel Project to be Centered in Utah
SMITHFIELD, Va., Feb. 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Smithfield Foods, Inc.
(NYSE: SFD) announced today that it will invest $20 million to build a
facility that converts swine waste into biodiesel vehicle fuel. Smithfield
will be the major partner in BEST BioFuel, LLC, a partnership that will
construct the project at Smithfield-owned swine production facilities near
Milford, Utah.
"Livestock waste can be a source of clean, renewable vehicle fuel," said
Robert F. Urell, Smithfield senior vice president, engineering and
environmental affairs.
The facility will be constructed at Circle Four Farms, a state-of-the-art
operation located in southwest Utah. The Beaver County Planning & Zoning
Board recommended approval of a conditional use permit at a meeting February
19. Construction is scheduled to start in April, pending final approval of
the conditional use permit and a permit from the Utah Department of
Environmental Quality, and the facility could start producing fuels as early
as October.
The project will involve the construction of a collection system to pump
waste to a central processing facility where it will be concentrated. The
concentrated liquid is then introduced into a second facility that produces
biogas, which is then piped to an enclosed plant where thermo-catalytic
processes convert it into biomethanol.
The biomethanol will be transported to a plant outside of Utah for
processing into biodiesel utilizing oils, such as soybean oil, animal fat or
used cooking oil. The result is a clean burning, renewable fuel that also has
been shown to extend the life of diesel engines due to improved lubricating
action.
"We should all be excited about the opportunities of projects such as
these," said Jean-Mari Peltier, Counselor to the Administrator of the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency. "We can get immediate environmental benefits
and the potential to create additional economic opportunities for our farmers
and rural communities as well."
Smithfield Foods is the leading processor and marketer of fresh pork and
processed meats in the United States, as well as the largest producer of hogs.
For more information, please visit http://www.smithfieldfoods.com .
This news release may contain "forward-looking" information within the
meaning of the federal securities laws. The forward-looking information may
include statements concerning the company's outlook for the future, as well as
other statements of beliefs, future plans and strategies or anticipated
events, and similar expressions concerning matters that are not historical
facts. The forward-looking information and statements are subject to risks
and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from
those expressed in, or implied by, the statements. These risks and
uncertainties include availability and prices of livestock, raw materials and
supplies, livestock costs, product pricing, the competitive environment and
related market conditions, operating efficiencies, access to capital, the cost
of compliance with environmental and health standards, adverse results from
ongoing litigation and actions of domestic and foreign governments.
