2026 SPECIAL SESSION I
ENROLLED
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 2197
Commending Smithfield Foods.
Agreed to by the House of Delegates, June 29, 2026
WHEREAS, Smithfield Foods, an American food company with a leading position in packaged meats and fresh pork products headquartered in the historic Town of Smithfield, celebrates its 90th anniversary on September 16, 2026; and
WHEREAS, founded in 1936 by Joseph W. Luter, Sr., and Joseph W. Luter, Jr., as the Smithfield Packing Company, the business began as a modest ham-curing operation on Commerce Street; and
WHEREAS, over nine decades of operation, Smithfield Foods grew through generational leadership, notably under the guidance of the late corporate visionary and philanthropist Joseph W. Luter III, who transformed the business from a regional packer into the world's largest pork processor; and
WHEREAS, Smithfield Foods has remained a cornerstone of Virginia's economy, growing the Commonwealth's multi-billion-dollar livestock industry, providing markets for local grain producers, and creating prosperous livelihoods for thousands of Virginians; and
WHEREAS, Smithfield Foods has consistently championed philanthropic investments in the Commonwealth and across the country, investing millions of dollars annually to support core initiatives in hunger relief, education, veteran support, and community vitality; and
WHEREAS, Smithfield Foods has driven profound local impacts in the Commonwealth by providing essential funding to invaluable regional organizations, including the Virginia Peninsula Foodbank in Hampton, to fight regional food insecurity and support neighbors in need; and